6. Little Rock, Ark.
> Violent crimes per 1,000: 14.9
> Population: 194,988
> 2011 murders: 37
> Median income: $44,415
> Unemployment rate: 7.2%

Though Little Rock’s 2011 violent crime rate is down from 2010, when there were 15.2 violent crimes for every 1,000 people, in many ways the city’s crime rate has not truly improved. Although in 2010 there were only 25 murders in the city, in 2011 there were 37. Additionally, incidents of forcible rape increased from 149 to 161, while the number of property crime incidents increased by 708, or almost 5%. According to the Little Rock Police Department’s COMPSTAT reports, the total number of violent, property and arson crimes has experienced a net increase since 2001, although with slight declines in more recent years.