Maine cities get low marks in cost-of-crime ranking
Photo / Maureen Milliken
Lewiston is the "safest city" with more than 30,000 people in Maine, as far as how much crime costs its residents, but doesn't crack the top 400 in the U.S.
Maine may have the lowest crime rate in the nation, but its three largest cities didn't make the top 400 "safest cities" when it comes to the cost of crime in the U.S., ranking behind dozens of other municipalities in New England.
Lewiston is No. 471 on the list, with a crime cost of $579 per capita; Bangor is No. 490, with a crime cost of $603 per capita; and Portland No. 661, with a crime cost of $924 per capita, according to the personal finance website MoneyGeek's "Calculating the Cost of Crime" ranking.
The "safest city" in the U.S., according to MoneyGeek, is Franklin, Mass., where crime costs $12 per capita. The least safe is Gary, Ind., 989 on the list, with a per capita cost of $8,786.
The ranking is more a look at the financial cost of crime, than how safe a town or city is, and the municipalities are ranked by what the government and individuals spend ranging from cost of substance abuse support and incarceration, to how much insurance companies pay out for property and medical damage related to crime, as well as how much residents pay in car and home insurance premiums.
The cost factors are weighed against crime statistics reported to the U.S. Department of Justice in seven categories — the nonviolent crimes of larceny, burglary and motor vehicle theft and the violent crimes of assault, rape, robbery and murder. Local law enforcement isn't required to report, and some don't report all crimes.
Overall, the study used the methodology in the National Institutes of Health "Cost of Crime" study.
The ratings were for cities and towns that ranged in population from 30,000 to 100,000, so only Portland (estimated population 66,458), Lewiston (35,865) and Bangor (31,872), qualified.
According to the ranking:
- Lewiston: Crime costs residents $579 per capita, the violent crime rate is 298.3 per 100,000, the property crime rate is 1,996.4 and the cost of crime is $20,763.
- Bangor: Crime costs residents $603, the violent crime rate is 109.8, the property crime rate is 3,664.7 and the cost of crime is $19,228.
- Portland: Crime costs residents $924, the violent crime rate is 242.3, the property crime rate is 2,580.6 and the cost of crime is $61,431.
Maine is often ranked as the safest state in the U.S. A 24/7 Wall Street ranking last year, was among the most recent to rank the state as the safest in the country for both overall crime and violent crime. In 2019, the most recent year for which statistics are available, Maine's crime rate was 1,361 crimes per 100,000 people. The national average was 2,489 per 100,000 people.
In the 24/7 Wall Street analysis, 92% of Maine crime is property crime — larceny, burglary and motor vehicle theft — much higher than the national 83% average. Maine reported 1,548 violent crimes in 2019 — aggravated assault, robbery, rape and murder.
In the 24/7 Wall Street report, Bangor is the state's "most dangerous city," with a crime rate of 3,775 per 100,000 people. Since the report ranks cities below the 30,000 population minimum of the MoneyGeek report, Portland is ranked eighth, with a crime rate of 2,823 per 100,000, and Lewiston is 13th, with a crime rate of 2,295.
Most Recent
Most Recent
0 Comments