Website for checking crime rate?

[DesmosediciRR]

Anyone know a good site for checking the crime rate in different areas of cities?

[Doug the Realtor]

I would contact the local police and ask. I would also ask the number of times police respond to calls, since I consider that a better barometer than actual arrests made.

 

Doug

[snowpuppy]

As a former cop, I'll chime in.......

 

Every police department has to report their crime statistics annually for that municipality but it's not broken down by neighborhood within that city.

 

If the department that serves the city where you are looking has a 'community policing' officer try to contact them. If not try their detective bureau and see if you can find a friendly voice there. They investigate those reported crimes.

 

More often than not, a Neighborhood Watch group can tell you exactly who is doing what in what home, and where.

[jst300z]

Usually local papers report weekly/monthly crimes that were committed. Our paper, for example, shows a map and different symbols show what type of crime that was committed. Then there is a brief summary that shows details of the crime. Our paper even has a pdf of the actual police summary/statement.

 

Google the area and look for newspapers.

[Saria]

http://www.crimereports.com/ is really useful if you're in a participating area.

[sgtmy]

bestplaces.net is okay. You can search all kind of info based on the zip code. The problem with looking at them by the zip code, is that that crime rates within one zip code can vary by neighborhood. The crime rate for my zip code is pretty high compared to the national average, but there is virtually NO crime in MY neighborhood. So the rating is misleading. At that site, the conclusion I came to, is that if the zip codes crime rating is BELOW the national average, then you can assume that crime is low there. If it is average or above, you can't really know for sure.