BISMARCK, N.D., Aug. 27 (UPI) -- The boost in North Dakota's economy from the oil boom has been met with a corresponding increase in crimes against women, Sen. John Hoeven said.
Hoeven, R-N.D., said the state received a $3 million grant from the U.S. Justice Department to help prosecute crimes against women in the Bakken region of the state.
"The rapid growth of western North Dakota's economy and population has also brought challenges, including crimes against women," Hoeven said in a statement Tuesday. "These grants are one of the law enforcement resources we're working to provide for the Bakken [area], as well as a larger drug enforcement and FBI presence in the region."
The state Attorney General said in a July report violent crimes in the state in 2013 increased by 7.4 percent while arrests for drug-related offenses increased 19.5 percent from 2012. The number of rape cases was down 2 percent year-on-year.
Average per capita income of $57,084 leads the nation in part because of the oil boom in the state. North Dakota was ranked 38th in the nation in that category in 2000.
