Urban Violent Crime & Legal Gun Ownership: A Story of Geographical Assault in the U.S.

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(Aug. 21, 2023) — Urban Violent Crime Statistics Fast Facts

National Average Violent crime rate – 366.7 violent crimes per 100K people in the US nationwide in 2019. (Source)
Washington, D.C., had the highest violent crime rate in 2022, with 999.8 crimes per 100,000 people. (Source)
89% of firearms used in crimes were obtained illegally, per a 2016 BJS report.
Of the 26,000 US homicides in the US in 2021, 60% (15,702) occurred in Metro and Fringe Metro areas.
Violent crime nationwide decreased by 1% from 1,326,600 in 2020 to 1,313,200 in 2021, with robbery decreasing by 8.6%, lowering the national average.
Violent crime rates in urban areas were 24.5 per 1,000 citizens in 2021. (Source)
There were 461,540 arrests for violent crimes in 2020 nationwide. (Source)
Suburban areas with a population of less than 50,000 had the most violent crimes in 2017.
Between 1994 and 2002, an increase in street gangs correlated with an increase in violent crime (61.1 homicides per 1.5 square miles).
Urban areas with a population size of 500,000-999,999 have the highest crude rate of violent crime. (Source)

Many factors play into violent crime victimizations in the U.S. Population size is only one factor. Poverty, criminality, education, and public policies all affect crime rates, particularly violent crime.

Violent crime costs American taxpayers more than $800 billion U.S.D. Annually according to this report. However, this isn’t the most sinister aspect of violence-related victimization in the United States. Recent reports indicate that there are 366.7 victims of violent crimes for every 100,000 people in the U.S. The highest violent crime rate in the U.S. occurs in communities with more than 500,000 and less than 1,000,000 residents.

The second highest violent crime rate occurs in communities with a population size between 250,000-499,999 thousand (21.7 per 100,000). The third highest violent crime rate occurs in communities with more than 1,000,000 people (20.0 per 1,000).

There is little correlation between a state’s firearm laws and violent crime rates. While New Hampshire has relaxed firearms laws, the state’s violent crime rate in 2022 was only 146.38. Washington, D.C., has extensive firearm regulations but a much higher violent crime rate per capita.

Key Methodology & Findings

Crime data is gathered from a variety of federal agencies to compile a broad perspective of actual and empirical data. Homicide reports come from the CDC, violent crime rates come from the FBI and the DOJ, the United States Census Bureau provides population data, and the National Institute for Health provides studies and information regarding economic and geographical crime-related data. Data provided by the FBI and DOJ largely relies on self-reporting from police agencies.

However, crime data takes years to collect; therefore, much of the data available today reflects crimes committed and victimizations from years prior. Moreover, some studies, particularly regarding gang violence in urban and rural settings, are over a decade old. Readers can also note that violent crime victimization rates are measured in 1/1,000 and 1/100,000. So, it’s essential to account for the raw data while also accounting for the percentage of a community’s population concerning crime.

Violent crimes, per the most common definition, include homicide, non-negligent murder, forcible rape (the definition recently changed to remove “forcible”), robbery, and aggravated assault. The United States Census Bureau also redefined urban. Urban populations now comprise 2,500 people with a jump distance (miles traveled between populous) to 1.5 miles.

NY and NJ have the highest concentration of population, with 19,426,449 people. L.A. has the second highest concentration of people, with 12,237,376 people. Texas, North Carolina, Pennsylvania, and Ohio comparatively have the largest rural population. Anchorage, AK, had the highest number of reported rapes in 2021 (186.7 per 100,000), with 64% of the population being gun owners.

Homicide in Urban Areas

The United States saw 26,031 homicides nationwide in 2021. Of those homicides, 42% occurred in only 50 counties (25% of the nation’s entire population). 28 of the 50 counties had more than 1,000,000 residents, and all 50 counties had more than 100,000 residents.

The highest number of total homicides by county is as follows:

Cook County, IL – 1,061 homicides of 5,173,146 residents
LA County, CA – 812 homicides of 9,829,544 residents
Harris County, TX – 606 homicides of 4,728,030 residents
Philadelphia County, PA – 551 homicides of 1,576,251 residents
Wayne County, MI – 367 homicides of 1,774,816 residents

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