Chicago has made national headlines over the past few years as gun violence continues to plague the city, but the 2013 FBI crime statistics uncovered a few more Illinois cities rocked by violent crime. Here are the Top 10 Illinois cities with the most violent crime (Chicago excluded).
1. Rockford
2. Springfield
3. Peoria
4. Champaign
5. Aurora
6. Joliet
7. Harvey
8. Waukegan
9. Bloomington
10. Decatur
Looking Deeper
For their analysis, researchers categorized violent crime as a range of acts, including murders, rapes, robberies and property crimes, like burglaries and auto thefts. According to the statistics, Rockford, Illinois, comes in at number one for violent crime, with 2,065 reports of violent crime per 100,000 residents. Rockford also had the most reported murders with 19, again outside of Chicago.
Other facts about the FBI Crime statistics include:
- Harvey, which only has a population of 25,500, had a whopping 10 murders in 2013.
- Aurora has the most violent crime of any Chicago suburb, with 601 instances per 100,000 residents.
- Cairo, a city of only 2,608 residents, had 22 reported cases of arson in 2013.
- Albers, with a population of 1,187, is the largest city in Illinois with no reports of any type of violent crime in 2013.
- Chicago excluded, there were 202 reported murders in Illinois in 2013.
Although the FBI stated that crime in Chicago is underreported, city data reveals that there were about 204,000 violent crimes in The Windy City in 2013. Additionally, there were 414 murders, 11,000 robberies and 7,500 instances of violent crime per 100,000 residents.
The FBI said the data should be used to determine how local and state officials can best prevent crime in areas that are most affected by violence.
Related source: CBS Local
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