Dakota County Crime & Safety

Dakota County has a total crime rate of 1928.4 per 100,000 residents, based on FBI Uniform Crime Reporting data. This includes both violent crimes (189.7 per 100K) and property crimes (1738.7 per 100K).

Dakota County has a safety score of 24/100, rated "High Crime". A higher safety score indicates lower crime rates relative to other counties nationwide. It ranks #79 out of 87 counties in Minnesota for safety (1 = safest).

Dakota sits below the statewide safety average of 98.2 and exceeds the state crime rate average of 1,123.5. As a populous area, it experiences more frequent incidents than rural Minnesota counterparts.

Property crime dominates the local landscape at 1,738.7 per 100K residents. The violent crime rate stands at 189.7 per 100K, which is higher than the state average of 153.0 but below the national level.

Crime data for Dakota County comes from the FBI Uniform Crime Reporting (UCR) program. Local law enforcement agencies submit data on violent crimes (murder, rape, robbery, aggravated assault) and property crimes (burglary, larceny-theft, motor vehicle theft) to the FBI. Rates are calculated per 100,000 residents to allow fair comparison between counties of different sizes. The safety score (0-100) is derived from these rates, with higher scores indicating safer counties.

Dakota County has a safety score of 24/100, which is below the Minnesota average of 58/100. Many counties with above-average crime rates invest in community policing, crime prevention programs, neighborhood watch initiatives, and social services aimed at reducing crime over time.