Photo: David Wilson · CC BY 2.0More crimes per resident are recorded in Hammond than in 98% of U.S. towns
Per 1,000 residents a year, 6.8 violent crimes and 54.3 incidents of property crime were recorded, against 8.9 and 36.4 in the rest of Louisiana. Even so, on crimes Hammond’s police reported from 2023 to 2025, it grades D− for safety: #36 of 46 graded towns in Louisiana. The graded rate fell 6% from 2023 to 2025. Violent crime here is higher than in 94% of U.S. towns; property crime, higher than in 99%.
Crimes reported to the FBI per 1,000 residents a year, 2023–2025. “Rest of LA” is every other Louisiana city and town in the FBI’s tables; the U.S. figure is the FBI’s national estimate as published, averaged over the three years. The FBI publishes no national homicide or robbery rate in our data, so those compare with all U.S. cities and towns in its tables.
What stands out about safety in Hammond
1 of the 1 graded towns next door reports less crime
Of the 2 Louisiana towns on Hammond’s borders, 1 have a Safety Grade: Ponchatoula (C−). Natalbany is an unincorporated community (a census-designated place) with no police department of its own. Neighbors ↓
Among Louisiana towns, closer to the middle
Louisiana’s cities and towns report more crime than most states’, so Hammond’s place among its own towns differs from its national one: it reports less crime than 22% of the 46 Louisiana towns we grade, against 2% nationally. Safety Grade ↓
A college town
Hammond is home to Southeastern Louisiana University, with 12,898 students taking classes on campus (federal college data), and 21% of residents are enrolled in college (Census). Students who live in town count as residents, so they are part of the per-resident rate. How to read it ↓
A job center
Hammond has 21,480 jobs based in town for 24,032 residents (Census LEHD), so some reports involve people who work or shop there rather than residents. How to read it ↓
Reported crime is falling
Crime reported per resident fell from 2023 to 2025 by more than ordinary year-to-year swings, on the grade’s own score. Trend ↓
Written from the FBI data on this page. Figures are crimes reported to police, not convictions.
What’s behind Hammond’s grade
Property crimes plus four times violent crimes reported to the FBI per resident, 2023–2025, on a national curve. Both violent and property crime are higher than in most U.S. towns; violent crime is the closer of the two to typical.
Crime in Hammond per 1,000 residents
Violent crime per 1,000 residents, 2025
Property crime per 1,000 residents, 2025
Crimes reported to police in 2025 per resident; one person can be the victim of more than one, and some reports involve visitors.
And about 6 violent crimes, in 2025. Below are 1,000 dots, one per resident; each colored dot is one reported crime.
Violent crime, by year and by type
Show as a table
| Year | Hammond | Rest of Louisiana | U.S. (FBI national estimate) |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2022 | 12.3 | 10.0 | 4.0 |
| 2023 | 8.6 | 9.4 | 3.9 |
| 2024 | 6.2 | 8.9 | 3.6 |
| 2025 | 5.7 | 8.2 | 3.3 |
Violent crimes per 1,000 residents
By type 2023–2025, counts
Hammond’s police reported 479 violent crimes to the FBI over 2023–2025, about 6.8 per 1,000 residents a year, against 8.9 in the rest of Louisiana and the FBI’s national estimate of 3.6.
Reported crime per resident, 2023 to 2025
Show as a table
| Year | Hammond property | Rest of Louisiana property | Hammond violent | Rest of Louisiana violent |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2022 | 65.9 | 42.4 | 12.3 | 10.0 |
| 2023 | 54.0 | 43.0 | 8.6 | 9.4 |
| 2024 | 55.9 | 34.0 | 6.2 | 8.9 |
| 2025 | 52.9 | 29.1 | 5.7 | 8.2 |
Crimes per 1,000 residents
Reported crime per resident fell from 2023 to 2025, by more than ordinary year-to-year swings. Per 1,000 residents, 2022–2025, against the rest of Louisiana.
1,433 crimes reported in 2025
2025 offenses reported
Offenses reported to police, not convictions. FBI Uniform Crime Reporting. The last row is counted outside the property total.
139 violent and 1,294 property, as reported to the FBI by Hammond’s police.
16 people died in crashes on Hammond’s roads in 2019–2023
Hammond had 16 fatal crashes in five years, in which 16 people died; 5 were pedestrians. 3 died in crashes on an Interstate.
That is 14.9 deaths per 100,000 residents a year, above the median for Louisiana towns of 5,000–25,000 people (10.9, 80 towns).
Deaths are counted where the crash happened, not where the people lived: a highway through town adds through-traffic deaths, and residents’ own risk on roads elsewhere isn’t here. Town rates sit below state and U.S. rates because a third of fatal crashes happen outside any town. Road safety is described here and is not part of the Safety Grade. Source: NHTSA Fatality Analysis Reporting System (FARS), 2019–2023.
Hammond and its neighbors
| Town | Grade | Violent | Property |
|---|---|---|---|
| Hammond | D− | 6.8 | 54.3 |
| Ponchatoula | C− | 4.2 | 23.9 |
| Natalbany | — | — | — |
Crimes reported to the FBI per 1,000 residents a year, 2023–2025. Natalbany is an unincorporated community (a census-designated place) with no police department of its own.
Louisiana towns of a similar size
| Town | Grade | Violent | Property |
|---|---|---|---|
| Hammond | D− | 6.8 | 54.3 |
| Zachary | C− | 3.3 | 20.7 |
| Slidell | C− | 2.8 | 24.0 |
| Sulphur | D | 3.2 | 29.7 |
| Ruston | D | 4.5 | 34.7 |
| Gretna | D | 4.0 | 34.7 |
The five graded Louisiana towns closest to Hammond’s population (24,032), by grade.
How reported crime compares across the town line. Tap a town to see its safety page.
What this data can and can’t tell you
- It’s reported crime. Only incidents reported to and recorded by police appear here. Many crimes are never reported to police.
- One number for all of Hammond. A town-wide rate doesn’t show where incidents happen, and that can differ a lot from one part of town to another.
- Visitors count too. Incidents involving people who work, shop or visit are counted against Hammond’s residents, which raises the per-resident rate.
- Whose population. Rates use the FBI’s population for the department (24,460 in 2025); our figure for Hammond is 24,032 (2025 Census estimate).
- Gaps are real gaps. A missing year means the department didn’t report a full year, not that nothing happened.
How the grade is calculated, for every town: How TownRatings grades safety →
Questions about safety in Hammond
Is Hammond, LA safe?
On crimes reported to the FBI in 2023–2025, Hammond reports more crime per resident than 98% of U.S. towns, a D− Safety Grade and #36 of 46 in Louisiana. Its police reported 6.8 violent crimes per 1,000 residents a year, against 8.9 in the rest of Louisiana and the FBI’s national estimate of 3.6.
What is the crime rate in Hammond?
6.8 violent and 54.3 property crimes per 1,000 residents a year, 2023–2025, as reported to the FBI. The rest of Louisiana reports 8.9 and 36.4; the FBI’s national estimate is 3.6 and 17.6.
Is Hammond safer than Ponchatoula?
Ponchatoula reports less crime per resident than Hammond: Ponchatoula grades C− for safety and Hammond D−. Ponchatoula’s police reported 4.2 violent and 23.9 property crimes per 1,000 residents a year, 2023–2025.
Who polices Hammond?
Hammond’s own police department, which reports to the FBI as “Hammond”. Its figures are the ones on this page.
Heads-up board
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Please don’t name or describe individuals. In an emergency, call 911.
Neighbors looking out for each other in Hammond.
Crime: FBI Uniform Crime Reporting Program, Crime Data Explorer: offenses known to law enforcement by city, 2025, and state and national rates. Counts are crimes reported to police, not convictions. The Safety Grade is our own summary of that data, not an official rating. Road deaths: NHTSA Fatality Analysis Reporting System (FARS), 2019–2023. This isn’t an official statement of public safety. In an emergency, call 911.