Recently I wrote about the most dangerous cities to live in within Texas. This was based on crimes per capita, and Dallas ranked the eighth most dangerous city in Texas.
The crime rate in Dallas has been on the increase. New Dallas Police Chief Eddie Garcia started in his role in February and acknowledged the challenge he had when he started.
"Every major city in the country has seen a surge in violent crime, we just need to ensure we have the right people at the table with us to come up with a plan to reduce that. We have the pieces, we just need to put together. It starts with ensuring our officers known building strong community relationships ... and taking the criminal element off of our streets are not mutually exclusive." New Police Chief Eddie Garcia
Many people wanted to delve deeper into Dallas's crime and look at which areas within Dallas had the higher crime rates.
Below are the three most dangerous neighborhoods in Dallas based on the number of violent crimes per 100,000 people for each district, compared to the Dallas violent crime average. All stats are based on data from the local law enforcement agency.
1. South Boulevard-Park Row
The South Boulevard - Park Row historic district was built primarily by the city's Jewish community around Temple Emmanu- El. It is bounded by South Boulevard, Edgewood Street, and Park Row Ave.
South Boulevard-Park Row crime rates are 128% higher than the Dallas average. The crime rates here are 284% higher than the United States average. Of even more concern is that the violent crime rate here is 777% greater than the national average.
2. Cedar Crest
Coming in second is Cedar Crest, where crime rates are 29% higher than the Dallas average. The Cedar Crest neighborhood had primarily wealthy white residents until the 1950s, when Black professionals began to move in and fight for desegregation of the local schools and community.
Cedar Crest has a crime rate 116% higher than the United States average. In addition, violent crime is a massive 374% greater than the national average.
3. South Dallas
In the third position of the most dangerous Dallas neighborhoods is South Dallas, which has a crime rate 161% higher than the United States average. In addition, South Dallas crime rates are 55% higher than the Dallas average.
It is south of Downtown Dallas and is bordered by the Great Trinity Forest on the south and east. Trinity River is on the west and Interstate to the north.
What makes a neighborhood dangerous?
Scott Decker, an Arizona State University criminology and a criminal-justice professor, said a wide range of factors determined crime in a neighborhood. This includes poverty, single-family homes, graduation rates, and lack of economic mobility. He said an area that has significant socio-economic disadvantages is more likely to have a higher violent crime rate than an area with more opportunities for its residents.
"It's not just the single variable; it's the combination of them that make things worse," Scott Decker
The rest of the top 10
Below are the Dallas neighborhoods that round out the top 10 in terms of crime:
4. Convention Center District
5. Cockrell Hill
6. Northwest Dallas
7. Wolf Creek
8. Oak Cliff
9. Urbandale-Parkdale
10. Eagle Ford
Prerak Shah, the acting U.S. attorney in Dallas, said Dallas was “bracing” for a violent crime surge in the summer. Police were going to target violent criminals who “devastate communities” and also to “signal to the rest of the city that the feds are watching.”
“The Dallas Police Department is not alone in weeding the criminal element off of our streets, and the Dallas Police Department is not alone in seeding our communities with hope.” Police Chief Eddie Garcia
Readers- what do you think? Are there any Dallas neighborhoods that you consider too dangerous and won't visit? Or are there ones on this list that surprise you? Let us know in the comments below!
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