According to a new 24/7 Wall Street report, we just made the naughty list.

The report cited by the Federal Bureau of Investigations, says the United States is becoming safer nearly every year, except for Odessa, Texas. With the booming economy, comes an undesirable element that is causing an increase in crime.

Based on figures published by the FBI’s Uniform Crime Report, 24/7 Wall St. determined the 10 metropolitan statistical areas where crime rates rose the most between 2007 and 2012.  Unemployment figures from the Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS), as well as the BLS’s “Economy At A Glance” tables were also referenced in compiling the report.

'These are the 10 U.S. cities where violent crime is soaring:

1. Odessa, Texas
> 5-year increase in violent crime rate: 75.5%
> Violent crime per 100,000 (2007): 468.1
> Violent crime per 100,000 (2012): 821.3
> Murders per 100,000: 3.5

There were 672.2 aggravated assaults per 100,000 residents in Odessa in 2012, an increase of more than 80% since 2007. Most property crimes, such as burglary and theft, became less likely over that time period, declining by 13.8% and 19.0%, respectively. On the other hand, motor theft, in particular, increased by 17% to more than 500 incidents in 2012. Many reported auto thefts, however, may have been illegitimate, according to an officer the Odessa Police Department. Some incidents, for example, may have been insurance fraud attempts, or drunk drivers abandoning their vehicle and claiming it was stolen. Some vehicles were being stripped for scrap metal, while others being taken merely for joyrides.' - TIME Business & Money

Rounding out the top 5 were, Columbus, Indiana; Wheeling, West Virginia; Hartford, Connecticut and Redding, California.

What are your thoughts on Odessa being named #1 on the list?

 

 

 

More From Mix 97.9 FM