Delaware has been ranked the ninth most dangerous state in the country, according to new findings based on FBI crime data for 2023, (The most recent year available) analyzed by Eden Emerald Buyers Agent. The company said the state recorded a total crime rate of 6,391 per 100,000 residents, placing it 26% above the national average of 5,074. This elevated rate includes offenses against persons, property, and society.
Breaking down the statistics further, Delaware also recorded the ninth-highest rate for offenses against persons at 1,647 per 100,000 people and the eleventh-highest for offenses against society at 1,092. In total, 16,993 crimes against persons were documented, with a significant majority, 16,246, classified as assault. Additionally, there were 11,268 crimes against society, including 7,462 drug or narcotic offenses. These figures underscore the state’s ongoing struggles with violence and substance-related crimes, particularly in more densely populated areas such as Wilmington and Dover.
Nationally, New Mexico topped the list with the highest total crime rate at 8,349 per 100,000 people, followed by Tennessee (7,082), Nevada (6,959), Arkansas (6,953), Kansas (6,758), South Carolina (6,475), North Dakota (6,455), Colorado (6,448), Delaware (6,391), and Louisiana (6,369). In contrast, the five safest states were Maine (3,093), Hawaii (3,144), New Hampshire (3,316), Rhode Island (3,319), and Massachusetts (3,393), each recording significantly lower crime rates well below the national average.
Methodology:
Data was gathered from the FBI’s National Incident-Based Reporting System (NIBRS) Tables, which provided the totals in each state for crimes against persons, property, and society for the most recently available year, 2023.
The three crime groups are broken down into categories as follows:
- Crimes against persons: assault offenses, homicide offenses, human trafficking offenses, kidnapping/abduction, sex offenses
- Crimes against property: arson, bribery, burglary/breaking and entering, counterfeiting/forgery, destruction/damage/vandalism, embezzlement, extortion/blackmail, fraud offenses, larceny/theft offenses, motor vehicle theft, robbery, stolen property offenses
- Crimes against society: animal cruelty, drug/narcotic offenses, gambling offenses, pornography/obscene material, prostitution offenses, weapon law violation
Each state’s number of crimes in each category was compared against the population covered by NIBRS to provide a rate per 100,000 people.
Source: Eden Emerald Buyers Agent
