Denver Crime Density Maps (low income, crime, house)

[tolife]

After combing through all of Denver's crime info online, I wanted to share the maps that I found most helpful when I was home shopping. They show crime densities for the different neighborhoods.

1. Click on this link: 2007 Crime Statistics
2. Click on "Citywide Crime Maps" to download the .pdf

3. Go to pages 14-26 of the .pdf for the density maps.

4. I found the "Total Offenses" on pg. 14 particularly helpful at identifying low crime areas.

5. Keep in mind that Denver is a year behind putting these density maps out, so only 2007 stats are out now.

I hope this helps someone!

[livecontent]

Excellent Post. I spend some time looking over the data. I think it is important not to read too much into the charts until you read the information of how to interpret and understand the information.

Livecontent

[jeepgrl015]

VERY HELPFUL GREAT POST! I am going to be moving there in the fall and was looking for some websites like these. I am a 25/single woman and these are some of the factors I need to consider. Do you have any other helpful tips?

Thanks again!

[tolife]

Hmmmm, I don't know that I have any other tips...just come visit and drive around everywhere to get a feel for the place. Do you have a job lined up already? I could help you narrow down a neighborhood to live in once your job is set. Just PM me.

I wouldn't recommend moving here unless you have some job prospects lined up. I recently was talking to a young woman who moved here from Chicago who had a masters degree. She said she was sending out many applications everyday and not having any luck landing something decent. She decided that she was moving back to Chicago for better job opportunities. I felt really bad for her....

Also being bilingual--spanish-will help you tremendously in finding a job in this area.

I didn't move here until I had a job offer. It took me five years of planning before I could get here.

[denverian]

That's odd. On the map of Stapleton, it shows a high density of crime at Havana and Smith Rd. That's where the county jail is located!

[CrimJust]

when looking at the numbers pay attention to the types of crimes-property crimes vs. violent crimes vs. drug crimes. also keep in mind reported crimes vs. unreported crimes (the dark figure of crime). if you look to the NCVS you may find some interesting facts concerning unreported crimes. don't make too much of crime figures since they are often misleading and generally tend to be skewed towards one direction indicating false patterns.

[the3Ds]

Excellent post. I find these maps to be very helpful because you'll notice when you read posts about the safety of an area, you'll get people who say, "Oh, my neighborhood is perfectly safe" but the stats show otherwise. I think the best thing to do is actually drive around an area, but even better is to use these maps to pinpoint an area you're interested in and then remember that you may find a block of neighborhood that is safe (according to the maps), but you've still got to go out to eat, shop, get gas, send your kids to school, etc. A neighborhood may have a "safe" elementary school, but the high schools cover a more spread-out area. A good example is Green Valley Ranch. You'll see lots of people defending their area (I am not one of them) but they don't mention that as of right now, your kids would have to go to Montbello High School and you will be hard pressed to find any good news about that particular school.

Also, I find it amusing that people say to try and differentiate between violent crime and property crime. Geez. Of course no one wants to be murdered but I also don't want my house or car broken into. If an area has a high property crime rate, what's stopping that crime from becoming more serious? If someone was planning on breaking into your car or house and you were in it, who's to say they didn't have a gun and would use it if they were able? Doesn't seem like a very thick line between property crime and violent crime.

[CrimJust]

there is a fine line between violent and property crime. motive plays a large part in driving people to commit property crime versus violent crime. you have to learn what causes violent crime, which is often very different between property crime. it depends on the goal of the suspect-whatever he or she intends to accomplish. stealing from a car simply requires the car to be unlocked with the owner not present (routine activities theory-capable offender, target, and no guardian or no capable guardian). it also depends on how far the suspect is willing to go. if the suspect really values whats in the car and the owner is in the car at the time the suspect plans to take the item then violence can ensue. if the suspect is afraid of getting caught he or she will probably wait till no one is around and then break into the car (again, routine activities theory is applicable here). anyways, there are myriad ways of explaining the fine line between property and violent crime. sometimes they do blend together. but most often they are separate. if they were in fact melded together then responses to surveys would highlight that dynamic (depending on the quality of the survey). however, ask 100 people if they have been victims of property or violent crime, and property crimes will come out ahead. in addition to this explanation, crime density maps concerning choosing a neighborhood also carry a unique caveat. middle to upper class neighborhoods suffer more from property crimes because they have the "shiny, expensive" stuff and most people who live in these neighborhoods are gone during the day (away at work) which is high time for burglars. at the same rate, low income neighborhoods suffer from violent for very different reasons. residents often feel hopeless about their situation, tend to stay indoors, refrain from joining neighborhood groups (which are popular in better neighborhoods, which increases awareness of potential problems), among other things, which, when combined, leads to neighborhood decay. this decay encourages violent and, yes, property crime. let us not forget the constant cloud of drug activity and its correlated crimes. you also must look at the value system of the residents found in each type of neighborhood and how they affects crime and its patterns. so, as you can see, the difference between property and violent crime is in fact real and there is quite a difference. for anyone to say otherwise shows that they do not grasp the concepts nor the research and relevant facts that support the argument.