Lake Charles, Louisiana Crime Rate
5 years of data (2020–2024) · Population: 77,982
Key Insights
- →Lake Charles has a safety grade of F with a violent crime rate of 613.0 per 100,000 residents (national avg: 359.1).
- →Violent crime dropped 3.6% from the previous year.
- →13 murders recorded in 2024 — a rate of 16.7 per 100K.
- →Crime trajectory: worsening — based on 5 years of data.
- →Safer than 8% of all cities in the OpenCrime database.
- →Violent-to-property crime ratio: 0.25 (near national average).
Violent Crime Rate
613.0
-3.6% YoY
Murder Rate
16.7
13 murders
Property Crime Rate
2469.8
1,926 total
vs National Avg
↑ 71%
National: 359.1
2024 Crime Breakdown
Violent Crime: 478
Murder13
Rape41
Robbery50
Aggravated Assault374
Property Crime: 1,926
Burglary478
Larceny-Theft1,288
Motor Vehicle Theft160
Arson0
Year-over-Year Comparison
| Year | Population | Violent Crime | Violent Rate | Murders | Property Crime | Property Rate |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2024 | 77,982 | 478 | 613.0 | 13 | 1,926 | 2469.8 |
| 2023 | 76,393 | 486 | 636.2 | 9 | 2,245 | 2938.8 |
| 2022 | 77,054 | 485 | 629.4 | 14 | 2,398 | 3112.1 |
| 2021 | 79,053 | 380 | 480.7 | 9 | 1,958 | 2476.8 |
| 2020 | 79,077 | 409 | 517.2 | 7 | 2,511 | 3175.4 |
Crime Rate Trends
Murder Rate Trend
F
Safety Grade for Lake Charles
Based on violent crime rate of 613.0 per 100K (national avg: 359.1)
Safety Percentile
Safer than 8% of cities
Crime Personality: Balanced
Crime in this city follows a typical distribution across crime types — no single category dominates.
Explore all city crime DNA profiles →National Arrest Demographics
The FBI does not publish per-city arrest demographic breakdowns. At the national level, arrest data shows significant racial disparities influenced by policing patterns, poverty concentration, and systemic factors.
Related Analysis
More for Lake Charles
Source: FBI Crime Data Explorer, Table 8 — Offenses Known to Law Enforcement by State by City. Rates per 100,000 residents.