Crime Time: Study shows Pierre crime rates exceed state and national averages

Meanwhile, Pierre also features a higher rate of property crime, such as fraud or burglary, than both the state and nation. Statistics show there are 27 property crimes per 1,000 people in Pierre, compared to South Dakota’s average of 17.3 incidents per 1,000 people, and the national rate of 22 per 1,000.

Nevertheless, Rapid City is rated more dangerous than Pierre, according to SafeWise. The organization shows 6.5 violent crimes for every 1,000 residents in Rapid City, along with 29.1 property crimes.

Still, SafeWise spokeswoman Rebecca Edwards said overall, crime rates are on the decline.

“We talked to more than 5,000 people from every state and one of the biggest takeaways is that people’s perception of crime is very rarely in line with crime rates and trends. The truth is that crime has been on the decline nationwide for two decades, but 66% of the people we talked to think it’s increasing across the board,” Edwards said. “In the past 10 years alone, nationwide property crime decreased by 28% and violent crime by 15%.”

Other highlights of the study for South Dakota include:

33% reported highest concern about being physically assaulted by a stranger. That’s seven percentage points below the national average of 40%;

Aggravated assault is the most common violent crime in South Dakota, accounting for 67% of the incidents reported in the safest cities and 75% statewide;

20% named mass shootings as the violent crime they believe is most likely to happen, versus 23% nationwide;

There hasn’t been a mass shooting in South Dakota since 2015;

From 2014 to 2019, there were two mass shootings in South Dakota, resulting in 10 deaths and one injured. Across the U.S., there were 2,087 mass shooting incidents from 2014 to 2019; and

5% of South Dakota survey participants said they, or someone close to them, has been personally affected by a mass shooting at some point in their life. Nationwide, 7% said the same.