Crime in Fort Dodge, Iowa

Fort Dodge's crime rate

There were 825 crimes reported in Fort Dodge, Iowa in 2019, the most recent year crime data is available. Adjusted for population, the city’s annual crime rate is 3,441 incidents for every 100,000 people.

How does Fort Dodge compare?

Fort Dodge 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.

Fort Dodge's overall crime rate is 72% higher than the overall crime rate in Iowa. Statewide, there were 63,109 crimes reported in 2019, or 2,000 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 Fort Dodge, however, property crimes account for about 88% of all offenses.

Property crime is more prevalent in Fort Dodge than it is nationwide. There were 724 property crimes in Fort Dodge in 2019, or 3,020 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 Fort Dodge. There were 566 larcenies reported in Fort Dodge in 2019, or 2,361 for every 100,000 people. Nationwide, the larceny rate is 1,550 per 100,000.

Burglary

There were 117 break-ins reported in Fort Dodge in 2019, or 488 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 Fort Dodge, meanwhile, there were 41 motor vehicle thefts in 2019, or 171 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 Fort Dodge, however, violent offenses account for a smaller 12% share of all reported crime.

At 421 incidents for every 100,000 people, the violent crime rate in Fort Dodge is above the national violent crime rate of 379 offenses per 100,000 people. Law enforcement in Fort Dodge reported a total of 101 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 Fort Dodge. There were 72 aggravated assaults reported in Fort Dodge in 2019, or 300 for every 100,000 people. Nationwide, the rate is lower, standing at 250 aggravated assaults per 100,000 people.

Robbery

Robbery is the second most common type of violent crime in America. There were 12 robberies reported in Fort Dodge in 2019, a rate of 50 robberies for every 100,000 residents. For comparison, the national robbery rate was 82 per 100,000 in 2019.

Rape

There were 15 rapes reported in Fort Dodge in 2019, or 63 for every 100,000 people. Nationwide, there were 139,815 rapes in 2019, a rate of 43 per 100,000 people.

Murder

There were 2 homicides committed in the city in 2019. Adjusted for population, the murder rate in Fort Dodge is 8.3 murders for every 100,000 people, considerably higher than the national murder rate of 5 per 100,000 people.

Fort Dodge compared to other cities in Iowa

Fort Dodge has a higher crime rate than the vast majority of all comparable cities in Iowa. 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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