Rockford, Peoria, Chicago On Deadliest Cities List

A new report from CBS News examined last year’s murder rates across the country in 65 major cities with populations of over 100,000 people. 

I think it's safe to say that showing up anywhere on a list of the deadliest cities in the country is not what any municipality would want. However, at least Rockford can take some solace in knowing that we're not in the top 5, top 10, or even top 25.

Overall, Rockford comes in at #29 on the deadliest cities list, with a murder rate of 15.7 per 100,000 people.

In Illinois, Rockford ranks third.

The cities in Illinois that qualify as "deadlier" are Chicago (with an overall national ranking of 16th) and Peoria (overall national ranking of 18th).

Chicago's murder rate is 20.7 per 100,000 people, and Peoria's murder rate is 19.5 per 100,000 people.

The highest-ranked, or deadliest city was St. Louis, with a murder rate of 60.9 per 100,000.

An estimated 16,214 people were murdered in the U.S. in 2018. That figure marks a 6.2% decrease from the 2017 estimate. The ratings were calculated using the FBI’s 2018 Crime in the United States data.