About

About CrimeAtlas and its data sources

CrimeAtlas is maintained as a public-data explorer rather than a news product. The current Chicago build catalogs 3 official datasets, 8,538,845 imported incidents, and 77 community area pages.

Who runs CrimeAtlas

A short introduction to the person or team behind the site and why this project exists.

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CrimeAtlas team

Independent publisher

CrimeAtlas is an independent public-data project built to make official city crime records easier to browse by geography, category, and year.

The project started as a response to how fragmented public-safety data can feel in practice. CrimeAtlas aims to turn official records into calm, structured reference pages that are easier to compare citywide and locally.

Imported incidents

8,538,845

Raw Chicago incidents currently stored in the database.

Tracked categories

34

Primary crime categories with route coverage.

Community areas

77

Chicago community area records used for local pages.

Source datasets

3

Official datasets currently cataloged in the MVP.

Context

What the site is trying to do

Additional reading notes to help interpret the statistics on this page.

CrimeAtlas team runs CrimeAtlas with an emphasis on source attribution, stable URLs, and readable civic-data pages.

The app is structured for additional city adapters, but Chicago is the only city currently published in the production pages.

Each page links back to source datasets, timestamps the latest refresh, and keeps the tone descriptive rather than speculative.

The current Chicago catalog includes 34 tracked primary crime categories and 77 community area records.

What readers can expect

CrimeAtlas is positioned as a geography and statistics product rather than a news feed or alert service.

CrimeAtlas is maintained as a product and data-publishing project focused on source attribution, reproducible imports, and lightweight public-data presentation.

Keep the site focused on public records, geography, and long-run trend context instead of incident-by-incident headlines.

Show source links, last-updated timestamps, and methodology notes alongside the main reading surfaces.

Prefer stable routes and reproducible data refreshes over one-off editorial pages.

Current data scope

The first live city is Chicago, with the data model and importer structure prepared for future expansion.

Chicago incidents import through a real Socrata adapter with resumable checkpoints and idempotent upserts.

Community area pages are backed by official community area boundaries because the incidents feed includes community area codes directly.

The separate neighborhood boundary file is cataloged as a source reference for future polygon-specific expansion.

Important context

Methodology and caveats

These pages summarize reported public records. Use source notes and methodology before drawing comparisons.

CrimeAtlas republishes and aggregates official public records rather than producing original incident reporting.

Counts can change as source systems revise classifications, locations, or related case details.

The site is designed for informational reference and should not be treated as a substitute for local expertise or official guidance.

Read the methodology page for pipeline details and the about page for source notes.

Sources

Official data sources

CrimeAtlas is built from public datasets published by city agencies. Each page links back to the underlying source and the latest import timestamp.

About the data

socrata dataset

Chicago community areas

Publisher: City of Chicago

Dataset ID: igwz-8jzy

Refresh cadence: Updated as needed

Last imported: April 13, 2026

Open source dataset API endpoint

socrata dataset

Chicago crime incidents

Publisher: Chicago Police Department

Dataset ID: ijzp-q8t2

Refresh cadence: Daily

Last imported: April 26, 2026

Open source dataset API endpoint

socrata file

Chicago neighborhood boundaries reference

Publisher: City of Chicago

Dataset ID: 9wp7-iasj

Refresh cadence: Legacy file dataset

Last imported: Not available

Open source dataset

Explore more

Related pages

Move between citywide, map, category, neighborhood, and year-specific routes with descriptive internal links.

Chicago crime rate and citywide statistics

CrimeAtlas privacy policy and cookie notice

Contact CrimeAtlas

CrimeAtlas disclaimer and disclosure

CrimeAtlas methodology and data caveats

Chicago crime map and recent incidents

Chicago crime trends by year and month

FAQ

Frequently asked questions

Short answers about data coverage, definitions, and how to read these pages.

Who runs CrimeAtlas?

CrimeAtlas is maintained as an independent public-data project focused on official city crime records, clear source attribution, and geography-first pages.

Where does the data come from?

CrimeAtlas currently uses City of Chicago open data, especially the Chicago Police Department incidents dataset and official boundary datasets published on the city portal.

Why are neighborhood pages based on community areas?

Chicago’s incidents feed includes official community area codes, so the MVP uses those stable geographies for aggregation, slug stability, and clear source alignment.

How can I contact the site?

Use the contact page or email contact@crimeatlas.org for corrections, data questions, or partnerships.