Statistics by zipcode.

June 23, 2009 12:07 PM

NeighborhoodScoutcollects information on neighborhoods in the United States. Using data from local law enforcement agencies, it has compiled a list of the 25 most dangerous neighborhoods in the country.
posted by lunit (19 comments total)

Too bad about Church Hill in Richmond. It's a beautiful area, and if I were ever forced to move back to my home city by force or judicial decree, I'd choose to live there if it weren't for this kind of thing.
posted by xmutex at 12:10 PM on June 23

So it looks like I have to subscribe in order to find any information on my neighborhood. Here's a stupid question: Why would I subscribe to get one-time info?
posted by shakespeherian at 12:11 PM on June 23

Yeah, I sure wish I didn't have to pay $14.99 to find out what my chances are of being a crime victim on my block. Not a great site for general use.
posted by availablelight at 12:12 PM on June 23

wow, not a single location in california or new jersey. I feel so safe!!!
posted by supermedusa at 12:12 PM on June 23

That web site looked great until the information I wanted had to be paid cash money for. Screw them.
posted by bukvich at 12:13 PM on June 23

How about a list of the 25 places you're most likely to get robbed on the Internet?
posted by msalt at 12:14 PM on June 23 [1 favorite]

How is this site better than EveryBlock?
posted by poq at 12:15 PM on June 23

It would appear that the South Side of Chicago is the baddest part of town.
posted by rocket88 at 12:17 PM on June 23 [3 favorites]

I was about the post that the #2 neighborhood always seemed dangerous to me, but not THAT dangerous. Then I remembered that I knew someone who was robbed at gunpoint, on a train platform, during rush hour, a couple of blocks from there. So maybe it is THAT dangerous.
posted by Bulgaroktonos at 12:19 PM on June 23

Apparently my home is not actually in my zip code. Thanks for the correction, NeighborhoodScout!
posted by brain_drain at 12:19 PM on June 23

I'm disappointed but by no means surprised by Philadelphia's sole entry on that list. Temple is a great public university whose immediate environs are incredibly crime-ridden; I'd stagger home from parties around the University of Pittsburgh at 4am and never felt unsafe drunk or sober; at midnight my Temple friends already insisted on bringing a small group to escort me to my car.
posted by Tomorrowful at 12:20 PM on June 23

The hell with this "subscribe for detail" crap. Not a real useful site.
posted by marxchivist at 12:22 PM on June 23

Interestingly, I do not see any segments of East St. Louis on the list, which makes me think that their methodology needs a different weighting. East St. Louis, in 2006, had double the murder rate of Compton, and about eight times the incidence of rape as the national average. Another part of St. Louis is on the list, though, so that's something.
posted by adipocere at 12:23 PM on June 23 [1 favorite]

I see L.A. is not on the list. Nor is San Bernardino, which has perennially vied with D.C for murder capital of the U.S. according to local papers. I am not sure of how that is defined...maybe "best" murders?
posted by Xoebe at 12:26 PM on June 23

Makes me wonder if all these bad neighborhoods in Chicago are bad because they're bad, or bad because they're the home of, say, just five really, really bad guys committing crimes over and over again, and if we just nailed those five jackasses, the neighborhood would instantly get 1000 percent better.
posted by Cool Papa Bell at 12:26 PM on June 23 [1 favorite]

Check out those comments, it doesn't take much to bring out the racists.
posted by exhilaration at 12:27 PM on June 23

Turns out, the West Coast really is the Best Coast! I think 2Pac summarized it best as follows:

"California...knows how to party
California...knows how to party
In the citaaay of L.A.
In the citaaay of good ol' Watts
In the citaaay, the city of Compton
We keep it rockin! We keep it rockin!"
posted by Dilemma at 12:27 PM on June 23

Oh wow, I didn't notice the subscribe thing because the data I was looking at was free. I apologize - that is sleezy.
posted by lunit at 12:31 PM on June 23

Um, that 5th most dangerous neighborhood in the country? Corner of North Avenue and Belair Road in Baltimore? It's mostly a cemetery. The little map is only showing about a four block stretch and the part that isn't a perfectly lovely area for the living challenged is pretty much urban ruins: abandoned, bombed out buildings. I think calling it a neighborhood is a bit of a stretch.
posted by mygothlaundry at 12:33 PM on June 23