Crime in Lakeland, Florida

Lakeland's crime rate

There were 3,580 crimes reported in Lakeland, Florida in 2019, the most recent year crime data is available. Adjusted for population, the city’s annual crime rate is 3,190 incidents for every 100,000 people.

How does Lakeland compare?

Lakeland has a higher overall crime rate than the vast majority of U.S. cities. For comparison, the national total crime rate is 2,489 incidents for every 100,000 people.

Lakeland's overall crime rate is 26% higher than the overall crime rate in Florida. Statewide, there were 542,116 crimes reported in 2019, or 2,524 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 2019. In Lakeland, however, property crimes account for about 90% of all offenses.

Property crime is more prevalent in Lakeland than it is nationwide. There were 3,230 property crimes in Lakeland in 2019, or 2,878 for every 100,000 residents. Meanwhile, the national property crime rate is 2,110 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 Lakeland. There were 2,589 larcenies reported in Lakeland in 2019, or 2,307 for every 100,000 people. Nationwide, the larceny rate is 1,550 per 100,000.

Burglary

There were 438 break-ins reported in Lakeland in 2019, or 390 for every 100,000 residents. For reference, there were 341 reported burglaries for every 100,000 people nationwide in 2019.

Motor Vehicle Theft

Across the United States, the annual motor vehicle theft rate is 220 for every 100,000 people. In Lakeland, meanwhile, there were 203 motor vehicle thefts in 2019, or 181 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 nearly 8.2 million offenses reported across the U.S. in 2019. In Lakeland, however, violent offenses account for a smaller 10% share of all reported crime.

At 312 incidents for every 100,000 people, the violent crime rate in Lakeland is below the national violent crime rate of 379 offenses per 100,000 people. Law enforcement in Lakeland reported a total of 350 violent crimes in 2019.

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 Lakeland. There were 183 aggravated assaults reported in Lakeland in 2019, or 163 for every 100,000 people. Nationwide, the rate is higher, standing at 250 aggravated assaults per 100,000 people.

Robbery

Robbery is the second most common type of violent crime in America. There were 97 robberies reported in Lakeland in 2019, a rate of 86 robberies for every 100,000 residents. For comparison, the national robbery rate was 82 per 100,000 in 2019.

Rape

There were 63 rapes reported in Lakeland in 2019, or 56 for every 100,000 people. Nationwide, there were 139,815 rapes in 2019, a rate of 43 per 100,000 people.

Murder

There were 7 homicides committed in the city in 2019. Adjusted for population, the murder rate in Lakeland is 6.2 murders for every 100,000 people, higher than the national murder rate of 5 per 100,000 people.

Lakeland compared to other cities in Florida

Lakeland has a higher crime rate than the majority of all comparable cities in Florida. To be considered comparable, a city must have a complete 2019 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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