Polk ranked 4th lowest crime rate in the state

POLK COUNTY—Polk County is currently ranked as having one of the lowest crime rates in the state of North Carolina. 

The North Carolina Association of County Commissioners recently released statistical data for 2019 and ranked Polk County as having the 4th lowest crime rate in the state. 

Polk has the lowest crime rate in the area, with Henderson ranked the 9th lowest in the state and Transylvania ranked the 12th lowest in the state. Rutherford County was ranked the 44th lowest in the state and Buncombe County was ranked the 66th lowest in the state. 

The violent crime rate is the number of violent crimes reported per 100,000 people. Violent crimes are defined as offenses that involve face-to-face confrontation between the victim and the perpetrator, including crimes of homicide, rape, robbery and aggravated assault. 

The lowest crime rate was in Madison County at a rate of 33. Next lowest was Yancey County at a rate of 43. Polk County’s rate was 63, along with Camden County at 63. 

The highest crime rates were in Lenoir, Scotland and Durham County. Mecklenburg had the 4th highest crime rate at a rate of 594 per 100,000 people. 

The NCACC releases an annual map with data highlighting demographic, economic, health and educational information from North Carolina’s 100 counties.