I pulled the public crime data from Rowlett PD's annual community briefing and cross-referenced it with the Texas DPS Crime in Texas report. Here is where Rowlett stands.
Rowlett 2025 crime stats (Rowlett PD annual report):
- Population: ~68,000
- Total Part 1 crimes: 1,847
- Violent crimes: 142 (homicide: 1, aggravated assault: 58, robbery: 24, sexual assault: 59)
- Property crimes: 1,705 (burglary: 198, theft: 1,124, auto theft: 287, arson: 6)
Crime rate per 1,000 residents:
- Violent crime rate: 2.09 per 1,000
- Property crime rate: 25.07 per 1,000
- Total crime rate: 27.16 per 1,000
How Rowlett compares:
- Dallas: 7.8 violent / 42.1 property per 1,000
- Garland: 4.1 violent / 33.5 property per 1,000
- Rockwall: 1.4 violent / 18.9 property per 1,000
- Sachse: 1.2 violent / 16.3 property per 1,000
- Texas state average: 4.2 violent / 27.8 property per 1,000
What the numbers tell us:
- Rowlett violent crime is well below the state average and significantly below Dallas and Garland. One homicide in a city of 68,000 is exceptional.
- Property crime is right at the state average. Theft (mostly retail and porch pirate stuff) drives the bulk of it.
- Auto theft (287 incidents) is the concerning trend. That is up from 211 in 2024. The Kia/Hyundai vulnerability affects Rowlett the same as everywhere.
- The DART station has not caused a measurable crime increase despite concerns when it was built. The station area crime stats are flat year over year.
Rowlett PD staffing:
- 87 sworn officers for 68,000 residents = 1.28 officers per 1,000
- National average: 2.4 officers per 1,000
- Rowlett is significantly understaffed relative to population. Response times are still good because crime volume is low, but growth without proportional hiring will eventually be a problem.
Bottom line: Rowlett is safe. It is not Southlake-safe or Rockwall-safe, but it is meaningfully safer than Garland, significantly safer than Dallas, and roughly comparable to Sachse and Wylie. The auto theft trend is the one area that needs attention.
Is Rowlett safe enough to raise a family, leave your garage door open, and walk at night? Yes. Is it crime-free? No city is. The data says you are in a good spot.
The staffing ratio is concerning. 1.28 officers per 1,000 when the national average is 2.4 is a significant gap. As Rowlett grows toward 75K-80K with Sapphire Bay, the city needs to be hiring aggressively.