Crime & Safety in Owensboro
Owensboro's real crime picture is genuinely two-sided: its 2024 violent-crime rate ran essentially even with, and per one cited figure slightly below, the FBI's national rate, even as its total crime rate (combining property and violent crime) runs higher than more than 98% of Kentucky communities per one source.
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Learn moreViolent Crime Runs Near the National Average
Owensboro's cited 2024 violent-crime rate ran 349.4 per 100,000, per NeighborhoodScout's FBI-sourced data -- essentially even with, and per this specific figure slightly BELOW, the FBI's cited 2024 national violent-crime rate of 359.1 per 100,000. This is a real, disclosed, genuinely more favorable comparison than several larger metros covered elsewhere in this project.
Property Crime and Total Crime Run Elevated Relative to Kentucky
This record does not omit Owensboro's real, disclosed elevation relative to Kentucky specifically: Owensboro's total crime rate (approximately 3,266.4 per 100,000, combining violent and property crime) runs higher than more than 98% of Kentucky communities per one source, driven substantially by a real, cited elevated property-crime rate (approximately 2,917.0 per 100,000).
2025 Trend: Most Major Crime Down, With One Disclosed Exception
The Owensboro Police Department's own cited 2025 statistics show most major crime categories declining approximately 6% versus 2024. This record discloses one real, honest exception it does not omit: homicides rose from 1 in 2024 to 4 in 2025, per the same reporting.
Owensboro Runs Approximately 1.64x the Kentucky Average Daily Violent-Crime Rate
Per one source, Owensboro's daily violent-crime rate runs approximately 1.64 times the Kentucky statewide average, even as it runs approximately at-or-slightly-below the FBI's cited national rate -- a real, disclosed distinction between Owensboro's standing relative to Kentucky specifically versus the nation as a whole this record does not conflate.
Key takeaways
- Owensboro's cited 2024 violent-crime rate (349.4 per 100,000) ran essentially even with, and per one figure slightly below, the FBI's cited 2024 national rate (359.1 per 100,000).
- Owensboro's total crime rate ran 3,266.4 per 100,000 in 2024, higher than more than 98% of Kentucky communities per one source, driven by an elevated property-crime rate.
- Most major crime categories declined approximately 6% in 2025 versus 2024 per OPD's own data, though homicides rose from 1 to 4.
- Owensboro's daily violent-crime rate runs approximately 1.64x the Kentucky statewide average, a real, disclosed distinction from its standing relative to the national rate.
- Per site policy, no specific Owensboro neighborhood is characterized as simply 'unsafe' -- research current, address-specific crime data directly for any target area.
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