(The Center Square) – Colorado had the fourth-highest overall crime rate in the country last year, an analysis by the Common Sense Institute found.
The think tank, which analyzed data from the Federal Bureau of Investigation’s Uniform Crime Report, found the state’s overall ranking for 2022 – with property and violent crime rates combined – is up from 31st in 2012. Colorado ranked second in 2021 and fifth in 2020.
According to the FBI data released last month, Colorado’s violent crime rate in 2022 was 492.5 per 100,000 residents and its property crime rate was 3,147.6 per 100,000 residents.
Those rates place Colorado eighth in the nation for violent crimes and third for property crimes, CSI said in its analysis.
“When it comes to crime, Colorado is still outpacing both neighboring states and the nation,” CSI Executive Director Kelly Caufield said in a statement. “In fact, from 2012 to 2022, Colorado is the only state among seven of its neighbors to experience a crime rate increase.”
Colorado’s overall crime rate increased 21.6% since 2012, while Kansas (-31.5%), Oklahoma (-29.6%), Texas (-27.6%), New Mexico (-9.6%), Arizona (-37.2%), Utah (-33.8%), Wyoming (-26.3%), and Nebraska -28.1%) all have seen decreases over the same timeframe.
The U.S.’s overall crime rate fell 28.3% since 2012, according to CSI.
