Safety in Prior Lake
Crime numbers for Prior Lake next to its neighbors, plus the police, fire and emergency contacts worth keeping handy.
Whether a town feels safe is one of the first things people ask about when they’re thinking of moving. Here’s what the numbers say, how Prior Lake compares with nearby cities, and who to call.
The numbers
Prior Lake reported 33 violent crimes in 2024, a rate of 117 per 100,000 residents. That’s about a third of the national rate of 359 (FBI). Counting property crime too, Prior Lake’s rate was about 43% below the national rate that year.
Property crime is far more common than violent crime here: 306 property offenses in 2024 against 33 violent ones. Lock the car, close the garage door and bring packages in.
Small numbers swing. Prior Lake had 37 violent crimes in 2025, and its rate rose to 132 per 100,000. A few cases either way move the rate a lot, so look at more than one year.
Compared with nearby cities
Violent crimes per 100,000 residents in 2024, from the FBI:
- Savage: 78
- Lakeville: 79
- Shakopee: 114
- Prior Lake: 117
- Burnsville: 207
- United States: 359
Of these five cities, Prior Lake’s rate is the second highest: above Savage, Lakeville and Shakopee, and below Burnsville. It was second highest in 2025 too. All five are far below the national rate. More on each city: Prior Lake vs Savage, vs Shakopee, vs Lakeville and vs Burnsville.
How it feels
I’ve lived in Prior Lake since 1986, and it feels safe to me. That’s one person’s view. In the city’s 2022 resident survey, 84% rated the overall feeling of safety favorably, 97% felt safe in their neighborhood during the day, and about 9 in 10 rated Prior Lake’s quality of life favorably.
The Polar Plunge happens at Sand Point Beach every February. In 2025, more than 1,100 plungers went into Prior Lake and raised more than $308,000 for Special Olympics Minnesota. The Prior Lake plunge had raised more than $3.1 million before this year.
Police
The Prior Lake Police Department works out of its own station at 4649 Dakota St. SE, near City Hall. The city lists 35 sworn positions, including 20 patrol officers, three investigators and a school resource officer. The lobby is open on weekdays, and after hours a call button in the entry reaches an officer. The Scott County Sheriff’s Office handles some countywide work, including boating enforcement on the lake.
In the city’s 2022 resident survey, 86% rated police services good or excellent.
There are two easy ways to meet the department. Night to Unite is every August: register a neighborhood party, and city staff stop by with a squad car, fire engine or plow truck. The city’s free Community Academy each spring includes a night with the police and a tour of the station.
Fire and medical
The Prior Lake Fire Department has had full-time crews since July 2023, backed by paid on-call firefighters. It covers Prior Lake, Credit River and Spring Lake Township from two stations, and it now answers medical calls too. Allina Health provides ambulance service.
The nearest emergency rooms are at St. Francis Regional Medical Center in Shakopee and M Health Fairview Ridges Hospital in Burnsville, roughly 10 to 20 minutes away depending on where you live.
Numbers to keep handy
- Emergency: 911
- Non-emergency, or to report a crime that isn’t an emergency (Scott County Dispatch): 952-445-1411
- Prior Lake Police office, including records: 952-440-3555
To see what’s been reported near you, the city links the LexisNexis Community Crime Map. It’s updated daily, you can sign up for crime alerts there, and it leaves out crimes by minors and sex offenses.
Sign up for city alerts
The city’s E-Notification emails cover city news, community events, parks and rec, Club Prior and snowplow alerts. For emergency alerts, subscribe to City Alerts through the city’s Notify Me page. Both are worth setting up in your first week.
Photo: Sunset on Prior Lake by Tiger Girl, CC BY 2.0.