We used to think that the Walmart HQ in Bentonville going out of business would be one of the most dangerous things that could happen in Arkansas and the rest of the country; but, sadly, that’s not the case.
There are more dangerous things than a big box giant taking away inexpensive groceries from people who like to shop in their pajamas: there are actually super dangerous places in The Natural State. And because not every place in Arkansas can be like the state’s safest place, Greenbrier, RoadSnacks set out to determine the most dangerous places in Arkansas for 2020.
Why’d we do it? To show the public how to navigate the places that most people don’t want to visit, but still want to know the gossip. You know, the stuff that Arkansasans see on Little Rock’s KATV at six or Fort Smith’s crime stoppers at ten.
How’d we do it? We consulted the numbers. In total, we analyzed 54 cities. We looked at the FBI’s latest crime report for violent crime and property crime statistics for every place with over 5,000 residents. We discovered that Arkansas’ violent and property crime numbers are even scarier than the most dangerous place in the state; and unfortunately, the effects of these numbers are continuing to claim many of Arkansas’ biggest cities. Cities like Pine Bluff and West Memphis just can’t catch a break.
Have we peaked your interest? Want to know more about our methodology and where the most dangerous places in Arkansas are located? Keep reading.
Here are the 10 most dangerous cities in Arkansas for 2020:
The top ten most dangerous places in Arkansas should come as no surprise to the good people of Arkansas. These cities helped solidify the state as the fourth most dangerous state in the country. And sadly, the most dangerous place in Arkansas, Little Rock, leads the charge.
To see the rest of Arkansas’ most dangerous places, take a look at the list below. And if you don’t find what you’re looking for there, head to the bottom.
Learn more about the safest places in Arkansas.
If you’re looking for something more national, check out the most dangerous cities in America or the most dangerous states in America.
For more Arkansas reading, check out:
- 10 Best Places To Live In Arkansas
- These Are The 10 Best Counties To Live In Arkansas
- 10 Cheapest Places To Live In Arkansas
Graphing The Most Dangerous And Safest Places In Arkansas
The 10 Most Dangerous Places To Live In Arkansas For 2020
There’s no surprise here, as Little Rock, time after time, has been cited by media as one of the most dangerous cities in the entire country.
Little Rock has, by far, more violent crime than any city in Arkansas. Residents in the capital have a 1 in 69 chance of being the victim of a violent crime each year, according to the FBI. And, after a year in which violent crimes went downward a bit in 2017, crime rates went back up in 2018.
Pine Bluff ranks as the 2nd most dangerous city in Arkansas thanks to 3rd place finish in violent crime and a 5th place finish in property crime.
Those rankings contribute to a 1 in 14.3 of being the victim of a crime in Pine Bluff.
I have lived in Pine Bluff for 6 years and after moving here from Miami, have seen more crime than anywhere I have ever live and it’s n ot even on the list. It is DANGEROUS here. How could you not include Pine Bluff. It is most likely #1.
West Memphis ranks as the 3rd most dangerous in Arkansas.
The city has not seen any improvements in its violent crime in recent years, but property crime did drop between 2017-2018.
That’s good, because without this improvement, West Memphis’s property crime rate might be the worst in Arkansas.
Residents here have a 1 in 16 chance of being victimized by a property crime, and a 1 in 76 chance of being the victim of a rape, murder or aggravated assault.
This small town in northwest Arkansas, near the Missouri state line, really packs a punch when it comes to crime rate. Residents in Blytheville have a 1 in 101 chance of being the victim of a rape, murder or aggravated assault, according to the most recent FBI report.
Much worse, residents here have a 1 in 16.5 chance of being the victim of a property crime, such as a car theft or home robbery. Chances are, if you live in Blytheville, someone on your street had something stolen from them this year.
Crime continues to tick upwards in the last three reporting years, and Blytheville’s population has dropped almost 25% since the year 2000.
Im from Blytheville Arkansas and it is an okay town. It can be dangerous every blue moon.
While property crimes went down in 2013, violent crimes were up, and residents here had a 1 in 112 chance of being attacked, raped or killed, according to the latest data.
The Reverend Al Green, known as a resident of Forrest City, might need to do some extra preaching to get residents to stop with all the criminal activity here.
I must say I live in Forrest city and where ever did you get the info that this town spends most the money on education for the kids- That’s a total lie, this town is in need of major makeovers from buildings to law and government
Helena-West Helena is a small town just a short drive from the Mississippi border.
Jacksonville is another city that represents its county as one of the most dangerous places in Arkansas.
Coming in at 8th on our list, Jacksonville mixes (relatively) middle of the pack violent crime and property crime without (relatively) excelling in either one.
We say relative because while its crime rates are middle of the pack for the top ten, they are still high for Arkansas as a whole.
Tiny Trumann, a short drive from the Tennessee border, has seen its crime rates tick upwards over the last few years, according to the FBI.
While violent crimes aren’t as bad as other cities above it, residents of Trumann still have a 1 in 19.4 chance of being victimized by a robbery of some sort.
Camden ranks relatively poorly in both categories of crime in Arkansas.
That left Camden’s residents with a 1 in 85 shot of being the victim of violence in 2018. Additionally, it ranked 15th for property crime.
How Is Your Town In ?
How we determined the most dangerous cities in Arkansas for 2020?
Every year the FBI release two crime datasets, a preliminary dataset limited to the biggest cities in the country, followed by a more detailed release at the end of the year.
For our analysis, we focused on the JUST released 2017 data, specifically the 2017 Crime In The United States Report. We will update the results when data becomes available in September 2019.
So what criteria did we use? Have a look:
- Violent Crimes Per Capita
- Property Crimes Per Capita
In order to make the analysis as apples to apples as possible, we only considered cities over 5,000 in population. That left us with 54 cities in Arkansas.
We then ranked each city from 1 to 54 for the two criteria with a #1 ranking being the most dangerous for the particular criteria.
Next, we averaged the two rankings into one “Dangerous Index”.
Finally, we ranked every city on the “Dangerous Index” with the lowest index being the most dangerous in Arkansas — Little Rock.
Read on for a detailed look at the 10 most dangerous cities in Arkansas.
Locking It All Up In Arkansas
The latest FBI crime data shows that Little Rock ranks as the most dangerous city in Arkansas for 2020.
We want to point out again that there’s still safes places in Little Rock and that this isn’t a comment on the people that live there. So please don’t beat us up.
If you’re curious enough, here are the safest cities in Arkansas:
- Cabot (Pop. 26,459)
- Greenwood (Pop. 9,454)
- Bella Vista (Pop. 28,798)
For more Arkansas reading, check out:
- 10 Best Places To Raise A Family In Arkansas
- These Are The 10 Best Places To Retire In Arkansas
- These Are The 10 Richest Cities In Arkansas
- 10 Safest Places In Arkansas
- 10 Worst Places To Live In Arkansas
Where Are The Most Dangerous Cities In Arkansas?
| Rank | City | Population |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Little Rock | 199,288 |
| 2 | Pine Bluff | 42,195 |
| 3 | West Memphis | 24,668 |
| 4 | Osceola | 6,819 |
| 5 | Blytheville | 13,843 |
| 6 | Forrest City | 14,144 |
| 7 | Helena-West Helena | 10,477 |
| 8 | Jacksonville | 28,530 |
| 9 | Trumann | 7,071 |
| 10 | Camden | 10,880 |
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