Sussex County, DE Violent Crime Rates and Maps

B-

Violent Crime Grade	B
Property Crime Grade	B+
Other Crime Grade	D+

Which crimes are included?

$43.9 million

Cost of Crime™ for Sussex County, DE

In 2025, violent crime will cost $422 per household.

More cost data

On the map, green marks the parts of Sussex County with the least violent crime and red marks the most, weighted by the type and severity of each offense. Violent crime concentrates where people gather after dark, near nightlife, bars, and transit, more than on residential streets. The Interpreting the Crime Maps section below explains how to read those hot spots.

The B grade reflects how often assault, robbery, rape, and murder occur in Sussex County against the average US county, where the rate is slightly lower than the norm. Sussex County sits in the 63rd percentile for violent-crime safety, ahead of 63% of counties and behind 37%. The grade covers only Sussex County's official city boundaries. See the table below for nearby counties.

The violent crime rate in Sussex County is 3.106 per 1,000 residents in a typical year. Residents generally consider the southeast part of the county the safest. Your chance of being a victim ranges from 1 in 236 in the northeast areas to 1 in 461 in the southeast.

Counting total incidents instead of per-capita rates, the central parts of Sussex County, DE report the most violent crime, about 137 cases per year. The south part reports the fewest, around 56 per year.

The Cost of Crime™ in Sussex County, DE

The tangible cost of violent crime in Sussex County is projected at $43,893,637 for 2025, about $172 per resident and $422 per household. That equals 0.4% of the median household income, and it counts only the bills that can be totaled: emergency care, lost wages, and the justice response. The larger cost, the harm to victims, comes later on this page. These tangible costs split into:

Criminal justice system costs (law enforcement, courts, and imprisonment): 43.4%
Direct costs to victims (damaged property, medical expenses, and lost wages): 42.9%
Lost economic contribution from offenders (time in prison or repeat offenses): 13.6%

How Much Does Violent Crime Cost in Sussex County Compared to Other Counties?

Sussex County, DE:	$172
New Castle County, DE:	$258
Kent County, DE:	$230
Delaware:	$232
USA:	$258

The tangible cost of violent crime is $172 per resident each year in Sussex County, which is $87 less than the national average and $60 less than Delaware's state average. The comparison below uses counties similar to Sussex County:

In New Castle County, DE, crime costs $258 per person, which is $86 more than in Sussex County.
In Kent County, DE, crime costs $230 per person, which is $58 more than in Sussex County

2025 Projected Violent Crime Cost by Type

The table below breaks the violent-crime total into its four offenses for Sussex County, with the projected cost per resident.

Crime	Cost to Sussex County	Cost per Sussex County Resident
Murder	$17.4 million	$68
Rape/Sexual Assault	$7.03 million	$27
Robbery	$2.79 million	$11
Assault	$16.7 million	$65
Total Cost of Violent Crime	$43,893,637	$172

The Human Cost of Violent Crime in Sussex County, DE

Much of what violent crime costs never reaches a bill. Pain, trauma, and lost quality of life for victims and their families typically outweigh the medical and legal totals above. Research-based methods put a figure on that harm so it can be compared across places. By those methods, the human cost of violent crime in Sussex County totals $154,697,889 ($605 per resident). Added to the tangible costs, the full estimate reaches $198,591,527 ($776 per resident). This human toll is what sets violent crime apart from property crime in Sussex County, DE, where the loss is mostly replaceable property. All Cost of Crime figures come from scholarly research on the cost of crime. Read more about our methodology here.

Interpreting the Violent Crime Maps

Violent crime rates are measured per resident, so places packed with visitors after dark read high even when few people live there. Bars, clubs, event venues, and transit hubs draw the crowds where assaults and robberies cluster. How strongly this shows on the map depends on the commercial base; the northeast part of the county has more retail establishments. A red block full of bars and venues does not mean the homes around it are dangerous.

Transit stations show the same effect: large moving crowds, few residents, so per-capita violent crime reads high. Before judging a residential street, weigh both the per-capita rate and the total count of incidents, and note what draws crowds nearby.

The interactive maps load faster on a solid connection. Compare high speed internet in Sussex County, DE at ISP Reports.

Sussex County Violent Crime Breakdown

The table below shows which offenses feed the Violent Crime Grade above, each as crimes per 1,000 Sussex County residents in a standard year.

Crime Type	Crime Rate
Assault	2.270
Robbery	0.3463
Rape	0.4532
Murder	0.0362
Total Violent Crime	3.106 (B)

Individual Sussex County Crime Maps & Stats

Crime Maps and Rates for Nearby Counties

Compared to surrounding counties, the rate of violent crime in Sussex County is lower. The table below shows Crime Grades for counties close to Sussex County.

Nearby County	Overall Crime Grade	Violent Crime Grade	Property Crime Grade
Wicomico County, MD	C	D	C+
Worcester County, MD	D+	D+	C-
Caroline County, MD	C+	C+	B-
Kent County, DE	D	C	D
Dorchester County, MD	D	D	D+
Cape May County, NJ	A+	C+	B+
Talbot County, MD	C-	B-	C+
Somerset County, MD	D-	D-	D
Queen Anne's County, MD	A	C+	A+
Calvert County, MD	A-	A-	A

Crime Maps and Rates for County with Similar Populations

Sussex County is lower versus other counties of the same size for violent crime. The table below compares crime in counties with comparable overall population in the county‘s boundaries.

Similar County	Overall Crime Grade	Violent Crime Grade	Property Crime Grade
Leon County, FL	A+	A	A
Capitol Planning Region, CT	B+	A+	A+
Jefferson Parish, LA	D-	C-	C-
Kent County, MI	B+	C-	C-
Kalamazoo County, MI	B+	C	C
Livingston County, MI	A+	A-	A-
Bernalillo County, NM	F	F	F
Minnehaha County, SD	C	B-	B-
Hamilton County, IN	A+	A+	A+
Lake County, IN	C	C-	C-

Considering only the violent crime rate, Sussex County is safer than the Delaware state average and safer than the national average.

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All maps and statistics above are projections, not certainties, and provided without guarantee free of charge. Verify all info before making any decisions based on the data.