Article Table Of Contents
Do you live in one of the murder capitals of Michigan?
We all watch the news with horror when we hear about a homicide that happens not that far away from us. While a murder just blocks or even a couple of towns away from your house would make anyone uneasy, in the long run, most likely, where you live is relatively safe.
So we wanted to get the facts straight and dug into the FBI crime data in order to identify the places with the most murders and the highest murder rates per capita in Michigan.
The city with highest murder rate in Michigan? That would be Muskegon Heights with 46.7 murders per 100,000 people.
While the city with highest number of murders period? Detroit with 275.
Read on below to see how we crunched the numbers and how your town ranked. There were 'only' 74 cities in Michigan where a city reported a murder to the FBI, meaning 146 places had no murder.
For more reading on the Wolverine State check out:
- Best Places To Live In Michigan
- Cheapest Places To Live In Michigan
- Most Dangerous Places in Michigan
The 10 Murder Capitals Of Michigan For 2021
How we calculated the murder capitals of Michigan
While there are surveys and public polls on what cities in a state are the most dangerous, we didn't want to rely on speculation and opinion. Instead, we looked at the hard numbers from the FBI's last year of reporting. Specifically, we analyzed the FBI's Uniform Crime Report which summarizes the number of murders that may happen in each city per year.
We only looked every single city in Michigan for which FBI data was available for the most recent FBI Crime In The United States. That left us with 74 cities to rank.
Finally, we averaged the two scores into an index:
- The raw number of murders in each city
- The murders per person
We felt as if a small place with 2,500 people and two murders makes it a lot more dangerous than a city of 25,000 people with three murders. Any ties went to the larger city. You can download the data here.
We must note that this report is not an analysis of the effectiveness of local police departments. It simply states where murders occurred most frequently on an absolute and rate basis.
There You Have It - The Places With The Most Murders In Michigan For 2021
If you're looking at the places in Michigan with the most murders, and where residents have the highest chances of being killed themselves, this is an accurate list. Again, these statistics are an indication of where crimes occur, not a statement about the effectiveness of the law enforcement in the areas they serve.
For more michigan reading, check out:
- Best Places To Raise A Family In Michigan
- Fastest Growing Cities In Michigan
- Safest Places In Michigan
- Best Cities For Singles In Michigan
- Worst Places To Live In Michigan
Detailed List Of The Places With The Most Murder In Michigan For 2021
| Rank | City | Murders |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Detroit, MI | 275 |
| 2 | Flint, MI | 23 |
| 3 | Muskegon Heights, MI | 5 |
| 4 | Inkster, MI | 7 |
| 5 | Muskegon, MI | 8 |
| 6 | Saginaw, MI | 9 |
| 7 | Pontiac, MI | 10 |
| 8 | River Rouge, MI | 3 |
| 9 | Benton Harbor, MI | 3 |
| 10 | Kalamazoo, MI | 9 |
| 11 | Traverse City, MI | 3 |
| 12 | Lansing, MI | 12 |
| 13 | Carrollton Township, MI | 2 |
| 14 | Jackson, MI | 4 |
| 15 | Buena Vista Township, MI | 2 |
| 16 | Madison Township, MI | 2 |
| 17 | Ecorse, MI | 2 |
| 18 | Highland Park, MI | 2 |
| 19 | Redford Township, MI | 4 |
| 20 | Benton Township, MI | 2 |
| 21 | Battle Creek, MI | 5 |
| 22 | Eastpointe, MI | 3 |
| 23 | Warren, MI | 8 |
| 24 | Grand Rapids, MI | 8 |
| 25 | Mount Morris Township, MI | 2 |
| 26 | Roseville, MI | 3 |
| 27 | Ypsilanti, MI | 2 |
| 28 | Dearborn, MI | 4 |
| 29 | Romulus, MI | 2 |
| 30 | Port Huron, MI | 2 |
| 31 | Wyoming, MI | 3 |
| 32 | Oak Park, MI | 2 |
| 33 | Zeeland, MI | 1 |
| 34 | Bay City, MI | 2 |
| 35 | Oscoda Township, MI | 1 |
| 36 | Kinross Township, MI | 1 |
| 37 | Saginaw Township, MI | 2 |
| 38 | Three Rivers, MI | 1 |
| 39 | Brighton, MI | 1 |
| 40 | Lansing Township, MI | 1 |
| 41 | Albion, MI | 1 |
| 42 | Lapeer, MI | 1 |
| 43 | Howell, MI | 1 |
| 44 | Marysville, MI | 1 |
| 45 | St. Clair Shores, MI | 2 |
| 46 | Grand Haven, MI | 1 |
| 47 | Waterford Township, MI | 2 |
| 48 | Coldwater, MI | 1 |
| 49 | Harper Woods, MI | 1 |
| 50 | Troy, MI | 2 |
| 51 | Owosso, MI | 1 |
| 52 | Ann Arbor, MI | 2 |
| 53 | Hazel Park, MI | 1 |
| 54 | Hamtramck, MI | 1 |
| 55 | Kalamazoo Township, MI | 1 |
| 56 | Wyandotte, MI | 1 |
| 57 | Garden City, MI | 1 |
| 58 | Plymouth Township, MI | 1 |
| 59 | Van Buren Township, MI | 1 |
| 60 | Southgate, MI | 1 |
| 61 | Holland, MI | 1 |
| 62 | Lincoln Park, MI | 1 |
| 63 | Orion Township, MI | 1 |
| 64 | Blackman Township, MI | 1 |
| 65 | Pittsfield Township, MI | 1 |
| 66 | Commerce Township, MI | 1 |
| 67 | Midland, MI | 1 |
| 68 | Meridian Township, MI | 1 |
| 69 | Royal Oak, MI | 1 |
| 70 | Taylor, MI | 1 |
| 71 | Novi, MI | 1 |
| 72 | Southfield, MI | 1 |
| 73 | Westland, MI | 1 |
| 74 | Canton Township, MI | 1 |
