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FBI Data: Top 25 Most Dangerous Cities in Massachusetts in 2022

By Tom Marino | October 25, 2023
Last Updated: October 25, 2023

WORCESTER – The the FBI released their annual national crime data from the 2022 Uniform Crime Reporting [UCR] Program’s National Incident-Based Reporting System — a collection of the number of offenses that come to the attention of law enforcement for a range of different crimes across each town, city, state and region in the United States.

From 2021 to 2022, violent crimes in the U.S. decreased by 1.25% and the number of homicides decreased by 6.12%.

In Massachusetts, the number of homicides increased by 10.45%. There were 158 homicides in Massachusetts in 2022, while 2021 had 134. Although homicides increased in 2022, there were still fewer homicides last year than in both 2020 and 2019.

The number of violent crimes increased by 6.85% in Massachusetts in 2021 and reached the highest number, 22,484, since 2019. Despite the increase, it is still lower than any year before 2019 in the data set available from the current FBI reporting system, which goes back to 1986.

Each year, ThisWeekinWorcester.com gathers the FBI’s crime data and ranks the 25 cities in Massachusetts with the highest violent crime rates per capita [1,000 people].

The FBI classifies violent crime by four offenses: homicide and nonnegligent manslaughter, rape, robbery, and aggravated assault. Violent crimes are defined in the UCR Program as those offenses that involve force or threat of force.

#25 Fitchburg

Population: 41,791

Violent Crimes: 184

Violent Crimes Per Capita: 4.40

Homicide: 1

#24 Barnstable

Population: 50,501

Violent Crimes: 232

Violent Crimes Per Capita: 4.59

Homicide: 2

#23 Greenfield

Population: 17,203

Violent Crimes: 80

Violent Crimes Per Capita: 4.65

Homicide: 0

#22 Taunton

Population: 60,062

Violent Crimes: 286

Violent Crimes Per Capita: 4.76

Homicide: 1

#21 West Springfield

Population: 28,655

Violent Crimes: 140

Violent Crimes Per Capita: 4.89

Homicide: 1

#20 Lawrence

Population: 88,422

Violent Crimes: 445

Violent Crimes Per Capita: 5.03

Homicide: 4

#19 Chicopee

Population: 55,265

Violent Crimes: 295

Violent Crimes Per Capita: 5.34

Homicide: 4

#18 Athol

Population: 11,938

Violent Crimes: 67

Violent Crimes Per Capita: 5.61

Homicide: 0

#17 Haverhill

Population: 67,359

Violent Crimes: 395

Violent Crimes Per Capita: 5.86

Homicide: 0

#16 Montague

Population: 8,581

Violent Crimes: 51

Violent Crimes Per Capita: 5.94

Homicide: 0

#15 Worcester

Population: 206,575

Violent Crimes: 1,248

Violent Crimes Per Capita: 6.04

Homicide: 11

#14 Ware

Population: 10,295

Violent Crimes: 63

Violent Crimes Per Capita: 6.12

Homicide: 0

#13 Boston

Population: 638,925

Violent Crimes: 3,926

Violent Crimes Per Capita: 6.14

Homicide: 47

#12 New Bedford

Population: 101,402

Violent Crimes: 627

Violent Crimes Per Capita: 6.18

Homicide: 4

#11 Brockton

Population: 110,084

Violent Crimes: 708

Violent Crimes Per Capita: 6.43

Homicide: 8

#10 Tisbury

Population: 5,079

Violent Crimes: 34

Violent Crimes Per Capita: 6.69

Homicide: 0

#9 Webster

Population: 17,651

Violent Crimes: 119

Violent Crimes Per Capita: 6.74

Homicide: 1

#8 Lynn

Population: 101,056

Violent Crimes: 682

Violent Crimes Per Capita: 6.75

Homicide: 7

#7 Oak Bluffs

Population: 5,653

Violent Crimes: 19

Violent Crimes Per Capita: 6.90

Homicide: 0

#6 Pittsfield

Population: 43,496

Violent Crimes: 314

Violent Crimes Per Capita: 7.22

Homicide: 3

#5 Chelsea

Population: 37,590

Violent Crimes: 293

Violent Crimes Per Capita: 7.79

Homicide: 0

#4 Springfield

Population: 155,046

Violent Crimes: 1,328

Violent Crimes Per Capita: 8.57

Homicide: 14

#3 Holyoke

Population: 37,945

Violent Crimes: 364

Violent Crimes Per Capita: 9.59

Homicide: 6

#2 Fall River

Population: 94,339

Violent Crimes: 940

Violent Crimes Per Capita: 9.96

Homicide: 3

#1 North Adams

Population: 12,836

Violent Crimes: 128

Violent Crimes Per Capita: 9.97

Homicide: 2

 

A data set of broad categories of crimes for each reporting municipality in Worcester County is below. The search feature will enable locating a specific location. Further below, a more robust set of crime statistics is available.

Below, you will find an expansive set of crime statistics for each reporting municipality in Worcester County. It may be easier, especially for mobile users, to search for the municipality you’d wish to see statistics for.

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