Crime & Safety

N.J. Towns With Highest Crime Rate: Is Your Town Here?

Patch identified data based on reported crimes per 1,000 residents - and some towns you wouldn't expect to see here were identified.

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Your town may not have the most crime. But it could still have a high crime rate.

Using information published by New Jersey Monthly last week, Patch identified the New Jersey towns with the highest crime rates based on reported crimes per 1,000 residents.

New Jersey Monthly culled information from the State Police’s Uniform Crime Report - using 2013 statistics - to help determine the ”top towns” in New Jersey. Patch then separated the annual crime rate data portion of the study to determine the towns with the highest-to-lowest crime rate.

The information was published in New Jersey Monthly’s ranking of 510 of the state’s 565 municipalities. New Jersey Monthly’s 2015 list, compiled by researchers at Leflein Associates, an independent research firm based in Ringwood, dropped towns with a population under 1,500 because of the lack of statistically significant data.

A number of Jersey Shore communities appeared on this list - perhaps indicating that a number of small communities are dealing with a pattern of crime that coincides with the summer tourism season.

Here is the list of 100 towns with the highest crime rates - with the town name, its county and the number of crimes reported per 1,000 residents...the entire list is linked at the bottom:

  1. SEA ISLE CITY Cape May 170.6
  2. WILDWOOD Cape May 145.1
  3. BROOKLAWN Camden 96
  4. ATLANTIC CITY Atlantic 92.3
  5. MILLVILLE Cumberland 89.9
  6. SEASIDE HEIGHTS Ocean 82.6
  7. NORTH WILDWOOD Cape May 82.2
  8. SALEM Salem 71.2
  9. ASBURY PARK Monmouth 69.7
  10. CAMDEN Camden 68.9
  11. SOMERDALE Camden 66.4
  12. POHATCONG TOWNSHIP Warren 65.7
  13. WATCHUNG Somerset 65.1
  14. LONG BEACH Ocean 61
  15. BRIDGETON Cumberland 60.5
  16. WOODBURY Gloucester 54.7
  17. WILDWOOD CREST Cape May 53.8
  18. PARAMUS Bergen 52.7
  19. DEPTFORD Gloucester 51.1
  20. NEPTUNE TOWNSHIP Monmouth 50
  21. NEPTUNE CITY Monmouth 49.8
  22. NEWARK Essex 49.6
  23. CLEMENTON Camden 49.2
  24. WESTVILLE Gloucester 46.6
  25. RIVERDALE Morris 46.3
  26. AUDUBON BOROUGH Camden 46.1
  27. IRVINGTON Essex 45.2
  28. BELMAR Monmouth 44.7
  29. NEW BRUNSWICK Middlesex 44
  30. CAPE MAY Cape May 42.9
  31. TRENTON Mercer 42.5
  32. VINELAND Cumberland 42.1
  33. COMMERCIAL TOWNSHIP 40.9
  34. CITY OF ORANGE Essex 40.8
  35. HAMILTON TOWNSHIP Atlantic 40
  36. OCEAN CITY Cape May 39.6
  37. BERLIN TOWNSHIP Camden 39.5
  38. EATONTOWN Monmouth 39.2
  39. UPPER DEERFIELD Cumberland 39
  40. PATERSON Passaic 39
  41. POINT PLEASANT BEACH Ocean 38.7
  42. MOUNT EPHRAIM Camden 38.7
  43. VENTNOR CITY Atlantic 38
  44. CHESILHURST Camden 37.7
  45. AVON-BY-THE-SEA Monmouth 37.6
  46. ELIZABETH Union 37.4
  47. LINDENWOLD Camden 36.8
  48. FAIRFIELD Essex 36
  49. PAULSBORO Gloucester 35.4
  50. ABSECON Atlantic 35.1
  51. MIDDLE TOWNSHIP Cape May 34.7
  52. PENNSAUKEN Camden 34.6
  53. MOUNT HOLLY Burlington 34.1
  54. PLAINFIELD Union 34.1
  55. MARGATE CITY Atlantic 33.5
  56. LUMBERTON Burlington 33.4
  57. LAWNSIDE Camden 33.1
  58. LINDEN Union 33
  59. TOTOWA Passaic 32.9
  60. CHERRY HILL Camden 32.6
  61. BURLINGTON CITY Burlington 32
  62. PENNS GROVE Salem 31.8
  63. LONG BRANCH Monmouth 31.6
  64. WOODBURY HEIGHTS Gloucester 31.4
  65. PALMYRA Burlington 31
  66. BRADLEY BEACH Monmouth 30.9
  67. SOMERS POINT Atlantic 30.7
  68. TOMS RIVER Ocean 30.6
  69. HILLSIDE Union 30.5
  70. WEST LONG BRANCH Monmouth 30.4
  71. PINE HILL Camden 30.3
  72. BEVERLY Burlington 30.3
  73. MORRISTOWN Morris 29.9
  74. GLASSBORO Gloucester 29.5
  75. GREENWICH TOWNSHIP Gloucester 29.4
  76. SECAUCUS Hudson 29.2
  77. COLLINGSWOOD Camden 29.2
  78. OCEAN TOWNSHIP Monmouth 28.8
  79. GLOUCESTER CITY Camden 28.8
  80. PENNSVILLE Salem 28.3
  81. RUNNEMEDE Camden 28
  82. PHILLIPSBURG Warren 27.8
  83. PLEASANTVILLE Atlantic 27.5
  84. CARNEYS POINT Salem 27.4
  85. WOODLYNNE Camden 27.3
  86. HARRISON Hudson 27.2
  87. WESTAMPTON Burlington 26.8
  88. MANVILLE Somerset 26.6
  89. BELLEVILLE Essex 26.4
  90. WILLINGBORO Burlington 26.3
  91. JERSEY CITY Hudson 26.2
  92. MAGNOLIA Camden 26.2
  93. BLOOMFIELD Essex 26.2
  94. MANSFIELD TOWNSHIP Warren 25.9
  95. EDGEWATER PARK Burlington 25.7
  96. LAWRENCE TOWNSHIP Mercer 25.6
  97. PROSPECT PARK Passaic 25.6
  98. OAKLYN Camden 25.6
  99. KEANSBURG Monmouth 25.2

100. EAST ORANGE Essex 25.2

See all 510 towns by clicking here.

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