Special Report

Tulsa, OK Is Among the Most Dangerous US Metro Areas

Samuel Stebbins

Published: November 8, 2021 12:01 pm

Last Updated: November 9, 2021 8:38 am

The U.S. violent crime rate — an annual, population-adjusted measure of cases of rape, robbery, aggravated assault, and homicide — climbed by 5% in 2020. The increase was driven by a rise in aggravated assault and, most notably, a historic 29% surge in homicides that made 2020 the deadliest year in the United States since the mid-1990s.

Despite the largest single-year increase in homicides on record, the overall violent crime rate in 2020 remains relatively low by historical standards. There were 1.3 million violent crimes reported in the U.S. in 2020, or 399 for every 100,000 people. For context, the violent crime rate ranged between 523 and 758 incidents per 100,000 throughout the 1990s.

Of course, crime is a local phenomenon influenced by a wide range of factors. As a result, violent crime rates in the U.S. can vary considerably from place to place — and in some metro areas, rates of violence far exceed the nation-level highs recorded in decades past.

WIth a violent crime rate of 591 incidents per 100,000 people, Tulsa, Oklahoma, ranks among the 50 most dangerous metro areas in the country. The local homicide rate of 9.3 murders per 100,000 is also among the highest of U.S. metro areas and well above the 6.5 per 100,000 national rate.

Violent crime has risen rapidly in the metro area last year, up nearly 12% over 2019. Some local officials attribute the high and rising crime rates in the area to the COVID-19 pandemic.

Metro areas are ranked on their violent crime rate using data from the FBI’s 2020 Uniform Crime Report. Additional data on specific crimes are also from the 2020 FBI UCR. Poverty rates are one-year estimates from the U.S. Census Bureau’s 2019 American Community Survey.