Crime moves to the east as Okaloosa makes soaring crime list

24/7 Wall St. published its list of “Top 9 Cities Where Crime is Soaring.” The Crestview-Fort Walton Beach-Destin metro area made the list at No. 8:

> 5-year increase in violent crime rate: 40.2%
> Violent crime per 100,000 (2009): 294.8
> Violent crime per 100,000 (2013): 413.2
> Murders per 100,000 (2013): 7.0

While the metros with soaring crime rates were not necessarily the most dangerous areas in the United States, the Crestview-Fort Walton metro area had one of the higher crime rates in the nation. There were 413.2 violent crimes reported per 100,000 metro area residents in 2013, versus the national rate of 367.9.

As in most cities with rising crime rates, Crestview’s 2013 unemployment rate of 5.2% — down from 7.1% in 2009 — was well below the national rate of 7.4%. Yet, the area’s strong economic growth since the recession did not seem to have helped fight rising crime rates.

A heavy reliance on military-dependent industries may make the city more vulnerable to government cutbacks, which could make addressing the area’s soaring crime rate more difficult in the future.