Move over New York, the Second City is now the murder capital of America.

According to new crime statistics released this week by the Federal Bureau of Investigation, Chicago had more homicides in 2012 than any other city in the country. There were 500 murders in Chicago last year, the FBI said, surpassing New York City, which had 419.

In 2011, there were 515 homicides in the Big Apple, compared with the 431 in Chicago.



But as the Washington Post noted, residents of Chicago and New York were much less likely to be victims of a homicide than some Michigan residents. In Flint, for example, there were 63 killings — a staggering number when you consider Flint's population is 101,632 — "meaning 1 in every 1,613 city residents were homicide victims." In Detroit, where 386 killings occurred in 2012, 1 in 1,832 were homicide victims.



Guns were used in the vast majority of slayings in the United States last year. According to the FBI data, 69.3 percent involved a firearm.



Overall, violent crime — homicides and aggravated assaults — was up less than 1 percent in 2012, according to FBI data.



There was some good news in the report. The estimated number of burglaries declined 3.7 percent in 2012, and property crimes (down 0.9 percent) fell for the 10th straight year.



Click here for the full report.



Cities with the most homicides in 2012



1. Chicago | 500

2. New York | 419

3. Detroit | 386

4. Philadelphia | 331

5. Los Angeles | 299

6. Baltimore | 219

7. Houston | 217

8. New Orleans | 193

9. Dallas | 154

10. Memphis | 133

11. Oakland | 126

12. Phoenix | 124

13. St. Louis | 113

14. Kansas City | 105

15. Indianapolis | 101



Source: FBI



























































