Which Cities Are Illinois’ Most Dangerous?

It doesn't take much perusing of daily news stories to realize that the world is a dangerous place. The same is true if we zoom in a bit to our state, even to our own home towns. If you think Chicago is the only spot in Illinois to be concerned about, you're in for a surprise.

Law Street Media just released their report on crime in America, called America’s Safest and Most Dangerous States 2017, using the latest available, reported violent crime data from the FBI. The report also ranks cities with populations of at least 25,000 that have the highest and lowest violent crime rates. Under the FBI’s Uniform Crime Reporting Program, violent crime is composed of four offenses: murder and non-negligent manslaughter, rape, aggravated assault and robbery.

Let's take a look at the top ten Illinois cities with the highest violent crime rate. We've listed the city first, followed by the number of violent crimes per 100,000 people, and then the number of murders thus far in 2016:

1. East St. Louis (3,340) (19)
2. Rockford (1,585) (19)
3. Danville (1,410) (0)
4. Harvey (1,179) (5)
5. Springfield (1,070) (11)
6. Chicago (904) (478)
7. Champaign (684) (4)
8. Peoria (665) (14)
9. Calumet City (612) (4)
10. Chicago Heights (601) (0)

Just for kicks, take a guess at which state was deemed to be America's most dangerous.

A) Illinois

B) California

C) Alaska

D) Florida

If you guessed Alaska, you know your dangerous states! Alaska has around 730 violent crimes per 100,000 people. Illinois is 21st, with 384 violent crimes per 100,000. Vermont is the least-dangerous, with 118 violent crimes per 100,000 people.