Why high crime rate in McCall? (Boise, Sandpoint: 2014, lawyer, homes)

[gusfringe]

Can anyone provide any insight? I'm looking to relocate to this area but the extremely high crime rates are alarming. I'm wondering if it can be explained away by tourism, misleading stats, bar fights, etc... or is it really just that dangerous of a place?

I searched and found a discussion from 2011 with just a few responses. I would love to get more current input from those with experience or knowledge of the area.

Thank you!

[ShadoAngel]

McCall is a touristy/resort town. By and large, cities that have a strong tourism base will also tend to report 'higher' crime rates, because a good portion of the people *in* town at any given time do not *live* in town. What that means is that the statistics are going to be skewed some.

There's roughly 3000 residents in the city of McCall. That doesn't count the thousands of people who visit the city for special events, the lake, nearby ski areas, etc. So, IMO, the statistics are misleading because there are often way more people in the area besides the resident population.

The same effect can be seen in North Idaho, where the city of Ponderay (population ~1100) has a crime rate that is often twice the national average, yet adjacent Sandpoint (population ~7500) has a crime rate historically well below average. There's no way there's 3x the crime happening in Ponderay vs Sandpoint, but the small base population vs tourists, out-of-city shoppers, etc. can make it seem that way.

[gusfringe]

Thank you, that is very helpful. I appreciate your time. So, in your opinion, would an area like McCall or Ponderay be a safe place to reside?

[ShadoAngel]

I haven't ever lived in either city, just visited both of them, but they appeared safe to me. McCall was on my list to move to for a while, but it was the snow that crossed it out, not the crime.

Ponderay is fine - it's no more dangerous than Sandpoint or Kootenai (cities with which Ponderay shares a border) - I think the high crime statistics might have something to do with the tiny base set population and the fact that several stores are in Ponderay including a Wal-Mart, Home Depot, Yoke's grocery store, etc. So any petty theft, car burglaries, shoplifting, etc. is going to count against the 1100 citizens of Ponderay, instead of the tens of thousands of Bonner county residents who shop there.

That's my opinion, but I'm also not an expert.

[TohobitPeak]

McCall is Boise's mountain getaway and I've never heard anything about a crime rate up there. It is pristine, rugged, touristy, and seems very safe whenever I visit.

[boisefan88]

The only crime I could think of would be during the 4th of July when all the rowdies hit up North Beach. Otherwise.... nothing.

[banjomike]

Minor property crimes like petty theft are probably the most common, but there are still many towns in Idaho where folks don't feel the need to lock their doors very often.


I have a good friend who lived for decades in McCall. If I remember to call him, he may be able to tell you all about the crime there, as he was a practicing lawyer there for quite a while. He eventually gave up the profession for his love of back-country flying, another occupation he excels at. The guys' a man of many talents. Being comfortable in a suit and tie is not one of them.

[boisefan88]

I meant to say North Shore.

[gusfringe]

I truly appreciate the wonderful responses. This is very helpful as we seriously consider relocating our family to McCall. Banjomike, I'd love to hear what your friend has to say about the area if you get a chance to speak with him. Thanks again everyone!

[sierra don]

Here is something that might help, it's Trulia Maps, I noticed the little crime map about halfway down the Trulia page when looking at homes in NID.

I did a little searching and actually found the stand alone "Trulia Maps" website today.

It's pretty cool, you can seach by address, by city and so on. You can use your scroll wheel on your mouse to zoom in and out, hold left mouse button down to slide the map. You will see small black circles (some w/numbers), mouse over the circle/dot and a list of crimes will show in a window, you can click on the window to see a full list of the crimes. Also it will color areas according to the amount of crime....green is Safe and orange and red are Less Safe.


Here is the link to Trulia Maps, I have defaulted to Sandpoint, if you zoom in over Ponderay you will see along Hwy 200 and between 5th and 7th streets it is yellow.......things like DUI, trespass, alarm, welfare check, more or less small stuff.......I think basically it is anything a Law Officer had to respond to for one reason or another.

Trulia Local - Visual analysis of local data

If you slide over to Newport, Wa. you will red, orange and yellow areas.

Here is a good example of an area w/lots of colors going on, Sacramento, Ca......Trulia Local - Visual analysis of local data