Crime in New Chicago, IN

New Chicago is a town of 2,440 in Lake County, about 30 miles southeast of downtown Chicago · Updated November 2026

Is New Chicago, IN safe?

New Chicago is among the higher-crime places in the US: an overall CrimeGrade™ of F, with more crime than the neighborhoods where 99% of Americans live. Property crime grades better than violent crime here, B+ against F.

F
Overall CrimeGrade™Safety score 0 of 1,000
Less safe than nearly all US neighborhoods What this means

1% of Americans live in neighborhoods with more crime than New Chicago as a whole, and 99% in neighborhoods with less. The typical US neighborhood has a safety score of 838, a CrimeGrade™ of A-. New Chicago scores 0.

Crime is concentrated in a small share of places, so most neighborhoods score high on the 0 to 1,000 scale. That is why a score in the 800s can still mean more crime than most US neighborhoods.

F
Violent crimeSafety score 0 of 1,000More violent crime than nearly all US neighborhoods
B+
Property crimeSafety score 760 of 1,000About as much property crime as the typical US neighborhood

How it works


Crime map of New Chicago

Map of New Chicago shaded by overall CrimeGrade™, from green for the least crime to red for the most
Click the map to explore
F D C B A+
Highest crime Safest
Colorblind friendly off

How to read the map: each area's color compares its crime with the people, homes and cars there, on one national scale, from green for the least crime to red for the most. Each area gets its own color, so a busy shopping center can show red while the homes beside it stay green. The interactive maps load faster on a strong connection. Compare high speed internet in New Chicago, IN at ISP Reports.

Who this page is for: homeowners and renters in New Chicago, and anyone thinking about buying or renting a home there.

Business and enterprise customers: this free map shows neighborhood areas. CrimeGrade™ business reports map crime at about 66-meter detail and estimate it for one address and type of business. See business reports


What stands out in New Chicago

Thefts are less common than in most F-graded cities. New Chicago has 9.4 thefts a year per 1,000 residents; for the typical resident of an F-graded US city, the figure is 20.4.


Crime rates and types in New Chicago

CrimeGrade™ estimates New Chicago has about 42 reported crimes a year for every 1,000 residents, 12% more than the US as a whole and 33% more than Indiana.

Overall crime

Violent crime

Property crime

Reported crimes a year, per 1,000 residents. These figures include simple assaults and vandalism, which the FBI's violent and property crime rates leave out.

Assault is the most common crime in New Chicago, about 45% of everything reported.

CrimeCrimeGrade™Reported a yearPer 1,000 residentsUS per 1,000
Violent crime
MurderF31.10.05
RapeB+under 10.290.38
RobberyA-under 10.300.62
AssaultC+4618.912.3
Property crime
BurglaryA31.22.4
TheftB+239.413.1
Vehicle theftA52.02.7
ArsonAunder 10.080.12
VandalismB-218.45.5

Each CrimeGrade™ compares a crime with what it affects: people for assaults and robbery, homes for burglary, parked cars for vehicle theft. Rates count crimes per 1,000 residents.

Select a crime's name to see its map above. CrimeGrade™ business reports map each crime at about 66-meter detail.


How New Chicago compares with nearby cities

New Chicago has the most crime of its 9 nearest cities.

Nearby cities

PlaceOverallViolentPropertyResidents
New ChicagoF0FB+2,440
Lake Station 1 mileF0FB+13,000
Hobart 2 milesA865AA-30,800
Gary 4 milesF61FB72,700
Portage 5 milesA-798B+A39,200
Show all 9
PlaceOverallViolentPropertyResidents
Ogden Dunes 6 milesA+944A+A+1,140
Wheeler 6 milesA+968A+A+1,280
Merrillville 6 milesA855AA-37,700
Griffith 8 milesA875AA17,700
Burns Harbor 8 milesB-580C-A+2,060

Nearest first, with each place's distance from New Chicago. Beside each overall CrimeGrade™ is its safety score, from 0 to 1,000 (higher is safer).

Compared with cities of similar size and density, New Chicago has more crime than 99% of them.

Cities of similar size and density

PlaceOverallViolentPropertyResidents
New ChicagoF0FB+2,440
Kimball, NEA+991A+A+2,440
Wellman, IAA+981A+A+2,440
Big Sky, MTA+972A+A+2,440
Berry, ALA+968A+A+2,440
Show all 10
PlaceOverallViolentPropertyResidents
Greenwood, CAA+965A+A+2,440
Dayton, MDA+940A+A2,440
Romance, ARA+934AA+2,440
Lilly, PAA919AA+2,440
Litchfield, MEA915AA+2,440
Fairlawn, VAA-796A-A-2,440

What crime costs New Chicago

Crime costs New Chicago about $5,325 a year per household, counting police, courts and prisons as well as victims' losses, more than triple the US figure of $1,205.

Cost of crime per resident, per year

Counting the pain and suffering of victims, which comes almost entirely from violent crime, the full cost comes to about $37 million a year, or $15,073 per resident.

How the cost breaks down
CrimeCost a yearPer resident
Murder$5.0 million$2,035
Rape$43,000$18
Robbery$23,000$9
Assault$460,000$189
Burglary$27,000$11
Theft$120,000$48
Vehicle theft$75,000$31
Arson$4,600$2
Vandalism$150,000$60
Total$5.9 million$2,403

How CrimeGrade™ works

A CrimeGrade™ shows how much crime an area has compared with the rest of the country, from A+ for the least crime to F for the most. Every neighborhood in the US is graded on the same scale, so a B in New Chicago means the same as a B anywhere else.

CrimeGrade™ starts from the crimes people report to police and measures each kind of crime against what it affects: people for assaults, homes for burglaries, parked cars for car thefts.

The rates on this page count crimes for every 1,000 people who live here, the way police departments report them.

Comparisons with US neighborhoods use the Census Bureau's block groups, small areas of about 1,400 residents, and count the people who live in each. The figures count crimes reported to police; many crimes, shoplifting above all, never are. Behind the grades, CrimeGrade™ tested 21,607 factors from 125 data families. For business owners, paid CrimeGrade™ location reports estimate crime at a single address for each type of business.

Where the numbers come from

  • Crime reports that police departments file with the FBI
  • State crime records and city crime data, where they are published
  • Population and housing figures from the US Census Bureau
  • Published research on what crime costs victims and communities

These are estimates of reported crime for whole areas, not a record of what happened on any one street. CrimeGrade™ updates them once a year and provides them free and without guarantee. Check local sources before you rely on them for a decision.

More about CrimeGrade™ data


Schools in New Chicago

Schools in New Chicago, IN average a SchoolGrade of D-: 27% of students test proficient, against 26% projected for schools like them. Overall, they exceed expectations. See schools in New Chicago on SchoolGrade