Crime in Elizabethtown, Pennsylvania

Elizabethtown's crime rate

There were 109 crimes reported in Elizabethtown, Pennsylvania in 2018, the most recent year crime data is available for the city. Adjusted for population, the city’s annual crime rate is 940 incidents for every 100,000 people.

In September 2020, the FBI released crime figures for 2019, however, as a complete dataset for Elizabethtown was not included in that release, 2018 data is shown here.

How does Elizabethtown compare?

Elizabethtown has a lower overall crime rate than the vast majority of U.S. cities. For comparison, the national total crime rate is 2,580 incidents for every 100,000 people.

Elizabethtown's overall crime rate is 48% lower than the overall crime rate in Pennsylvania. Statewide, there were 230,008 crimes reported in 2018, or 1,796 for every 100,000 people.

What types of crimes are being committed?

The FBI's crime rate includes seven crime categories: three property crimes -- larceny, burglary, and motor vehicle theft, and four violent crimes -- aggravated assault, robbery, rape, and murder.

Property crime

The vast majority of crimes in America are property crimes, accounting for 85% of total crimes in 2018. In Elizabethtown, however, property crimes account for only about 81% of all offenses.

Property crime is much less prevalent in Elizabethtown than it is nationwide. There were 88 property crimes in Elizabethtown in 2018, or 759 for every 100,000 residents. Meanwhile, the national property crime rate is 2,200 incidents per 100,000 people.

Larceny

Larceny is by far the most common type of property crime in the U.S. It is also the most commonly committed type of property crime in Elizabethtown. There were 82 larcenies reported in Elizabethtown in 2018, or 707 for every 100,000 people. Nationwide, the larceny rate is 1,595 per 100,000.

Burglary

There were 5 break-ins reported in Elizabethtown in 2018, or 43 for every 100,000 residents. For reference, there were 327 reported burglaries for every 100,000 people nationwide in 2018.

Motor Vehicle Theft

Across the United States, the annual motor vehicle theft rate is 229 for every 100,000 people. In Elizabethtown, meanwhile, there was just one reported motor vehicle theft in 2018, or 9 for every 100,000 people.

Violent crime

Violent crime accounts for a relatively small share of crimes nationwide. These offenses, which are generally more egregious than property crimes, account for about 15% of the more than 8.4 million offenses reported across the U.S. in 2018. In Elizabethtown, however, violent offenses account for a larger 19% share of all reported crime.

At 181 incidents for every 100,000 people, the violent crime rate in Elizabethtown is well below the national violent crime rate of 381 offenses per 100,000 people. Law enforcement in Elizabethtown reported a total of 21 violent crimes in 2018.

Aggravated Assault

Aggravated assault is by far the most common type of violent crime reported in the U.S. It is also the most commonly reported violent offense in Elizabethtown. There were 11 aggravated assaults reported in Elizabethtown in 2018, or 95 for every 100,000 people. Nationwide, the rate is far higher, standing at 247 aggravated assaults per 100,000 people.

Robbery

Robbery is the second most common type of violent crime in America. There were 3 robberies reported in Elizabethtown in 2018, a rate of 26 robberies for every 100,000 residents. For comparison, the national robbery rate was 86 per 100,000 in 2018.

Rape

There were 3 rapes reported in Elizabethtown in 2018, or 26 for every 100,000 people. Nationwide, there were 139,380 rapes in 2018, a rate of 43 per 100,000 people.

Murder

There were 4 homicides committed in the city in 2018. Adjusted for population, the murder rate in Elizabethtown is 34.5 murders for every 100,000 people, many times higher than the national murder rate of 5 per 100,000 people.

Elizabethtown compared to other cities in Pennsylvania

Elizabethtown has a lower crime rate than the majority of all comparable cities in Pennsylvania. To be considered comparable, a city must have a complete 2018 FBI crime report and population of 5,000 or more.

Here are all comparable cities ranked by total crime rate. Click any bar or city name to see more about crime in that city.

Click here to see a list of all city crime pages.

Click here to see a list of all state crime pages.

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