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Oakland has the third-highest crime rate in the U.S. and Richmond has the 14th-highest, according to an annual crime report just released by CQ Press.
Camden, N.J. has the country’s highest crime rate, according to the report, “City Crime Rankings 2009-2010: Crime in Metropolitan America,” based on statistics compiled by the FBI.
The rankings for cities and metropolitan areas include incidents of murder, rape, robbery, aggravated assault, burglary and auto theft. The rankings include all cities of at least 75,000 residents that reported crime data to the FBI in those categories for 2008.
CQ Press has acknowledged that its annual crime rankings are considered controversial by some law enforcement agencies and that the FBI, police and many criminologists caution against rankings according to crime rates.
Law enforcement agencies state crime levels are affected by many factors including population density, the concentration of youth in the population, economic conditions, cultural factors, education levels and crime reporting practices.
Accordingly, the crime rankings are often deemed “simplistic” and “incomplete”, CQ Press said.
“However, this criticism is largely based on the fact that there are reasons for the differences in crime rates, not that the rates are incompatible,” CQ Press said in the release.
Oakland Mayor Ron Dellums was quick to issue a statement refuting the report.
“While the FBI has questioned the validity of these rankings and the U.S. Conference of Mayors says this report is both ‘misleading and a disservice to the public,’ Oakland’s own data says that our city is making progress in bringing peace to our streets,” Dellums said.
Camden, N.J., whose crime rate and rate of violent crime were higher than any other U.S. city, had 2,332.6 violent crimes per 100,000 population, compared with a national average of 454.5, which landed the city dead last in rankings at 393.
Colonie, N.Y., had the lowest city crime rate, with just 54 incidences of violent crime last year. Joining Colonie among the lowest rankings are Mission Viejo and Irvine, both in Southen California; Amherst, N.Y., and Ramapo, N.Y., which had the lowest ranking last year.
Washington, D.C.-based CQ Press calculated the rankings using crimes reported to the FBI in six categories — murder, rape, robbery, aggravated assault, burglary and motor-vehicle theft. A total of 332 metropolitan areas and 393 cities was considered in the survey, using statistics released by the Uniform Crime Reporting Program of the FBI in September.
The City Crime Rankings is one of five annual reference books published by CQ Press that analyze and rank cities and states in various categories.
CQ Press is based in Washington, DC, and is a division of SAGE Publications, an independent academic and professional publisher
Behind Camden with the highest crime rate ranking are St. Louis, then Oakland, followed by Detroit, Flint, Mich., and New Orleans.
State College, Pennsylvania tops the list for lowest crime rate ranking among the 332 U.S. metropolitan areas that are ranked, while the Pine Bluff, Arkansas region has the nation’s highest crime rate ranking for metropolitan areas for the second consecutive year.
No surprise ! Crime is always high where there is a large black population. It’s a fact.
Brad…you also forgot to mention that crime is also high where democrats have been in office for several years. Oakland, Detroit, New Orleans, Chicago, Newark, and the list goes on and on.
Democrats love the welfare state. Welfare breeds continued dependence which breeds unemployment which can lead to crime.
Hmmm, wasn’t it President Clinton who pushed through welfare reform during his term. I do not recall the last occupant of the White House doing anything proactive to further reform welfare or reduce the numbers dependent on the safety net.
Also, isn’t the whole “people living their lives permantly on welfare” a bit of an urban legend. Do “!” have any data to support his/her contention that a welfare state really exists? Or is he just against the government providing a safety net to individuals and families who find themselves in financial trouble?
And “!”, are you saying cities controlled by Republicans and I am not sure there are many, but let’s say Atlanta, Dallas, and Phoenix are crime free? I believe the data shows these cities have high crime rates also. It is somewhat the nature of the beast.
There are other dangerous cities, they just don’t keep track of crime as much. I was assaulted/robbed in downtown Dallas, at 2 pm, during a weekday, with many people present. Nice way to spend a vacation! So yes, Oakland made the list of cities with lots of crime, but if any of you has been to New York, you will know that well, it is wise not to be out and about at night in certain parts – just like in Oakland.
And what about Antioch? Wasn’t there an article about the Dugart case, and they mentioned how many sex offenders live there? And what about San Jose? A 12 year old just got shot there this past Halloween, and just go back and read the many crimes/rapes/abductions that have happened there. Oakland is no different than some “safe” places that did not make the list.
My comment wasn’t inappropriate, it was the truth. Facts don’t lie. Just look at all the big cities in this country. Then look at a city like, say Pleasanton. Low crime rate. What kind of people live here? Need I say more?
you think i would never drive down 14th street!!!
“say Pleasanton. Low crime rate. What kind of people live here? Need I say more? ”
Did you read the article about the teens allegedly robbed at gunpoint here in Pleasanton? (Vineyard ave)
http://www.pleasantonweekly.com/news/show_story.php?id=3016
Just because a city is considered safe, it does not mean crime is non-existent. San Jose for instance, made the top 4 safest cities! It was in the mercury news. Now that is not credible imo, San Jose has had so many crimes. I know a friend who lives in a quiet San Jose neighborhood, and there was a man found dead in his home (shot). Yet San Jose makes the top 4 safest cities?
Again, Oakland is no different than some parts of San Jose, some parts of New York, etc.
The problem is related to the drug trade. Oakland and Richmond are SUPPLIERS. You can help by eliminating the BUYERS in your city.
Oakland??? When will they ever learn????
Let’s be hones here it’s the color of the skin of the people who are doing most of the crimes in those cities. A bunch of animales they are.
My concern about crime is not about the color of skin. My concern is to bust the criminals and take them off the streets.
How come it’s sooooo important to you that you can see the difference between skin colors?