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On a national level, violent crime dropped 5.5% from 2009 to 2010, while property crimes dropped 2.8%, according to recently released data from the FBI. This good news is not necessarily representative of all cities however. In several of the largest and poorest cities, violent crime rose. Many of these places cannot afford to police crime as well as they once could. Additionally, poverty in many cases drives crime rates up, causing twice the trouble for law enforcement. This article looks at the ten cities with populations greater than 100,000 where rates for violent crime are the highest.
10. Stockton, CA - Stockton has one of the worst unemployment rates in the country -- 18.8%. This may be one of the driving causes of the city's high crime rates, and also a contributing factor as to why it was rated as one of the most miserable cities to live in by Forbes.
9. Rockford, IL - Despite having a population of only about 150,000, Rockford has an extremely high rate of crime. It has the fourth highest rate of aggravated assault in the country. It also had 20 murders in 2010, twice the amount that occurred in 2000. Read the full article.
