Tampa Safest Among Five Most Populated Cities in Florida

Published by nora | Filed under Buyer / Seller Tips, Communities, Miscellaneous, Mortgage / Finance, Pinellas County Homes, Real Estate

Tampa had the lowest crime score among the five most populated cities in Florida, namely Jacksonville, Miami, Tampa, Saint Petersburg and Orlando last year, based on the FBI report “Crime in the United States 2009” released in September 2010. Based on charts of estimated population as of 2009, Jacksonville has a population of 810,064; Miami, 419,205; Tampa, 345,233; Saint Petersburg, 244,933; and Orlando, 235,109.

Based on crime score, Saint Petersburg surpassed all other Florida cities, large or small, with a score of 148.42. Compared to other U.S. cities, Saint Petersburg was 31st. Second highest among the five was Orlando, with a score of 132.45 and a national ranking of 46th. Third was Miami, with a score of 126.34 and a national ranking of 51st. Fourth was Jacksonville, with a score of 78.95 and a national ranking of 89th. Last among these five largest cities was Tampa, with a score of 43.97 and a national ranking of 155th.

The crime score of Saint Petersburg, however, was far lower than the score of Saint Louis, Missouri, which was 381.62, the highest among the scores of 400 U.S. cities that were ranked. Next nationwide was Camden, New Jersey with 374.33, and third and fourth were the Michigan cities of Detroit and Flint with scores of 356.44 and 310.31, respectively. Eight Illinois cities, including Chicago, were not ranked due to lack of data.

If the crime scores of the ten largest cities in Florida are considered, Tampa had the third lowest score, behind Cape Coral, Port Saint Lucie and Hialeah. In the crime score chart, Cape Coral was 348th, Port Saint Lucie was 339th and Hialeah was 227th. Regardless of population, the five safest cities in Florida were Coral Springs, Cape Coral, Port Saint Lucie, Pembroke Pipes and Boca Raton. All these five cities had negative crime scores – meaning their crime scores were below the composite national crime score.

FBI collates its crime data using reports from law enforcement agencies throughout the country. FBI, however, warns in its report that the scores should be used or applied in studies or city rankings with caution, as there are various factors affecting situations in different cities.

Nevertheless, it’s reassuring for Tampa residents and people planning to move to Tampa that Tampa is among the safest cities in the region, based on the FBI data. This data is corroborated by a report from the Tampa Police Department, which says that Tampa’s crime rate has sharply dropped by 56 percent over the past seven years and that crime prevention efforts are expected to cut the rate by a further five percent this year.