High levels of violent crime compromise physical safety and psychological well-being. High crime rates can also deter residents from pursuing healthy behaviors, such as exercising outdoors. Additionally, exposure to crime and violence has been shown to increase stress, which may exacerbate hypertension and other stress-related disorders and may contribute to obesity prevalence. Exposure to chronic stress also contributes to the increased prevalence of certain illnesses, such as upper respiratory illness, and asthma in neighborhoods with high levels of violence. Uniform Crime Reporting (UCR) data is generally regarded as a valid and reliable index of the types of crime residents view as serious events.

For more information please visit, Violent Crimes for Cabarrus County on the Robert Wood Johnson County Health Rankings.

Violent Crime is the number of violent crimes reported per 100,000 population. Rates measure the number of events (i.e., deaths, births, etc.) in a given time period (generally one or more years) divided by the average number of people at risk during that period. Rates help us compare health data across counties with different population sizes.

To learn more about the Measure Methods, please visit the Violent Crimes Notes on Methodology Section, on the Robert Wood Johnson County Health Rankings Website.