Study: Florida 4th Least Peaceful State In The Country
MIAMI (CBSMiami) – While Florida is known as the Sunshine State, the Institute for Economics & Peace said Florida is also one of the most violent states in the country.
Specifically, Florida ranked fourth worst in the country for violence, according to the IEP's Peace Index. The same study found the Miami-Miami Beach-Kendall area is the fourth worst in the country for violence.
Florida placed two metro areas in the bottom eight in the nation for most peaceful cities. Jacksonville ranked eighth in the IEP Peace Index released Tuesday.
Overall, the South was rated as the least peaceful region in the country with the highest homicide, violent crime, incarceration rate, highest gun ownership, and the second highest police employee rate in the country.
Louisiana was ranked as the least peaceful state for the 20th straight year. The report did note that both the homicide and violent crime rate have fallen along with the incarceration rate.
If you are looking for a nonviolent area to live, play, and work, you should either north or west.
Maine, Vermont, and New Hampshire were ranked 1-3 for most peaceful states in the country. Utah, North Dakota, Washington, and Hawaii all placed in the top eight for most peaceful states in the U.S.
The report found that nationwide, the country was more at peace than at any time since 1991.
According to the report, the total cost of violence to the U.S. was calculated to be more than $406 billion while the lost productivity from violence amounted to $318 billion.
