By KAREN SPILLER, Telegraph Staff
Article published Oct 31, 2006
The city twice named best place to live in the country has received yet another high ranking – it’s now considered one of the safest.
Nashua landed at No. 27 on the list of America’s safest cities in the country in a report released Monday by Morgan Quinto Press, a private research and publishing firm. Some 371 cities were ranked.
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HOW NASHUA RANKS
Here is a summary of the statistical profile compiled by Morgan Quinto Press about Nashua: Crime: National avg* - Nashua* *Numbers of incidents per 100,000 people in 2005, the most recent data available. |
Manchester – the largest city in the state – ranked No. 124.
Morgan Quinto ranked the cities from safest to most dangerous, based on the FBI’s most recent figures for murder, rape, robbery, aggravated assault, burglary and vehicle theft.
Nashua, with a population of 87,411, ranked 27th; making it the safest city in New Hampshire.
“What it really boils down to is the men and women out there doing their job,” said Police Chief Timothy Hefferan. “If they weren’t so committed to the job they’re asked to do today, we wouldn’t be 27th out of all those cities.”
Only cities that reported crime rates were included in the list. New Orleans, for instance, was not included because its police department didn’t report figures this year.The most dangerous city was St. Louis, followed by Detroit and Flint, Mich. The safest city in the country was Brick, N.J., population about 78,000; followed by Amherst, N.Y., and Mission Viejo, Calif.
Nashua’s murder rate of 2.3 per 100,000 people was half the national average of 5.6, according to Morgan Quinto’s statistical profile. The nation’s robbery rate is more than four times Nashua’s robbery rate of 31.8 per 100,000 people, and Nashua’s burglary rate is also half the national average.
“With those kind of rates, Nashua just has considerably less crime than most cities do,” said Scott Morgan, president of Morgan Quinto Press. “That’s why it does so well in our ranking.”
All cities of 75,000-plus populations that reported crime data to the FBI for the six crime categories were included in the rankings. Some 371 cities were ranked. The figures were calculated taking into account crimes committed within city limits.
Mayor Bernie Streeter was pleased with the ranking of the state’s second largest city, though he said it’s been known for years that Nashua is safe. In 1991, the FBI ranked Nashua as the second-safest city in the nation.
“The reason is the fact that we have an outstanding police department,” Streeter said. “The criminal element south of us avoids Nashua because we have a crackerjack police department.”
Last year when a number of Asian gangs were coming to Nashua from Lowell, Mass., Nashua police stepped up patrols where the gangs were hanging out.
“These folks got so sick of us, that within the weeks, they were back in Lowell,” Chief Hefferan said.
Shortly thereafter, an Asian gang member shot another at a traffic light in downtown Lowell.
“Had we not aggressively dissuaded them from staying in Nashua, we may have very well been investigating that homicide on Main Street in the city,” Hefferan said.
Hefferan said the department doesn’t have sufficient resources, but does what it can with what it has. He pointed to a 2000 federal study stating that a department of Nashua’s size should have had 199 police officers – and that was six years ago.
“We’re only given money for 177,” Hefferan said, citing current numbers. “We’re about 20 short of where we should be.”
And for every three police officers hired, Nashua loses one or two to retirement, he said.
Still, Nashua police officers are proactive and enjoy police work, Hefferan said. “There’s no cutting-edge policing we’re doing here,” he said. “It’s paying attention and enforcing even the most minor of infractions.”
Hefferan noted several recent incidents in which routine traffic stops resulted in arrests for cocaine, Ecstasy and even handguns. On Friday, police stopped a car for a hit-and-run and seized several ounces of cocaine, Hefferan said.
For years, the Nashua Police Department has applied something called the “broken windows” theory to community policing. The theory means disorder in neighborhoods leads people to be disorderly. In other words, broken windows lead to more broken windows. But when police fix the problem, it stops getting bigger.
“We applied it to the Tolles and Whitney streets area of Nashua in late ’80s, early ’90s,” said Heffernan of a time landlords were letting their buildings be used for drug deals. “We seized buildings from landlords and forced people to be more responsible. Neighbors started feeling more empowered.”
Today, many Nashua residents feel safe, too.
“I think the ranking is justified and is a testimonial to Nashua’s fine services, such as police, fire and medical,” said Alan Frank, 59, of Nashua, who has lived in Nashua for 27 years.
Nashua resident John Sobecky said he has lived in Nashua and Manchester, but feels much safer in Nashua – something he attributes directly to the police force, neighborhood watches and city government.
“Nashua has its fair share of petty crime, to be sure,” Sobecky added. “But I still do not feel unsafe to go to any part of Nashua at any time of the day or night.”
Nearby Manchester, a city with a population of 109,310, has about 200 sworn police officers, said Chief John Jaskolka, adding that he’d like to see Manchester’s ranking improve.
“We’re not happy about that,” Jaskolka said.
Manchester saw a 17 percent decline in violent crimes in 2005 – which was good for a city that had a 21 percent increase in violent crime the previous year, Jaskolka said.
One problem Manchester has dealt with has been shootings at some of its nightclubs.
HOW CITIES MEASURE UP
The following is a list of the safest and most dangerous cities overall, as compiled by Morgan Quitno Press, which bases the rankings on FBI figures released in June. The list starts with the safest cities and ends with the most dangerous.
| 1. Brick, N.J. 2. Amherst, N.Y. 3. Mission Viejo, Calif. 4. Newton, Mass. 5. Troy, Mich. 6. Colonie, N.Y. 7. Irvine, Calif. 8. Cary, N.C. 9. Greece, N.Y. 10. Coral Springs, Fla. 11. Thousand Oaks, Calif. 12. Orem, Utah. 13. Round Rock, Texas 14. Dover, N.J. 15. Lake Forest, Calif. 16. Sterling Heights, Mich. 17. Simi Valley, Calif. 18. Roswell, Ga. 19. Lee’s Summit, Mo. 20. Broken Arrow, Okla. 21. Chino Hills, Calif. 22. Gilbert, Ariz. 23. Edison, N.J. 24. Cranston, R.I. 25. Port St. Lucie, Fla. 26. Sandy, Utah. 27. Nashua, N.H. 28. Danbury, Conn. 29. Huntington Beach, Calif. 30. Orange, Calif. 31. Hamilton, N.J. 32. Parma, Ohio. 33. Overland Park, Kan. 34. Santa Clarita, Calif. 35. Stamford, Conn. 36. Cheektowaga, N.Y. 37. Livonia, Mich. 38. Sunnyvale, Calif. 39. Murrieta, Calif. 40. Canton, Mich. 41. Plano, Texas. 42. Warwick, R.I. 43. Torrance, Calif. 44. Clifton, N.J. 44. Newport Beach, Calif. 46. Woodbridge, N.J. 47. Fargo, N.D. 48. Norman, Okla. 49. Olathe, Kan. 50. Boca Raton, Fla. 51. Livermore, Calif. 52. Centennial, Colo. 53. Fremont, Calif. 54. Clinton, Mich. 55. Vacaville, Calif. 56. Tracy, Calif. 57. Bellevue, Wash. 58. Carlsbad, Calif. 59. Pembroke Pines, Fla. 60. Farmington Hills, Mich. 61. Richardson, Texas 62. Rancho Cucamon, Calif. 63. Boulder, Colo. 64. McKinney, Texas. 65. Rochester, Minn. 66. Beaverton, Ore. 67. Santa Clara, Calif. 68. Daly City, Calif. 69. Lewisville, Texas. 70. Napa, Calif. 71. Burbank, Calif. 72. Arvada, Colo. 73. Alexandria, Va. 74. Virginia Beach, Va. 75. Ann Arbor, Mich. 76. Quincy, Mass. 77. Glendale, Calif. 78. Ventura, Calif. 79. Provo, Utah. 80. Fullerton, Calif. 81. Lawrence, Kan. 82. Scottsdale, Ariz. 83. Carrollton, Texas. 84. Hillsboro, Ore. 85. Somerville, Mass. 86. Kenosha, Wis. 87. Davie, Fla. 88. Chino, Calif. 89. Sunrise, Fla. 90. Cape Coral, Fla. 91. Henderson, Nev. 92. Billings, Mont. 93. Cedar Rapids, Iowa. 94. Plantation, Fla. 95. Costa Mesa, Calif. 96. San Mateo, Calif. 97. Garland, Texas. 98. Madison, Wis. 99. Corona, Calif. 100. Clovis, Calif. 101. Yonkers, N.Y. 102. Alhambra, Calif. 103. Buena Park, Calif. 104. Odessa, Texas. 105. Chandler, Ariz. 106. Norwalk, Conn. 107. Upper Darby, Pa. 108. Peoria, Ariz. 109. Westminster, Calif. 110. Roseville, Calif. 111. Lakewood, Calif. 112. San Jose, Calif. 113. Honolulu, Hawaii. 114. El Paso, Texas< 115. Santa Barbara, Calif. 116. Temecula, Calif. 117. Cambridge, Mass. 118. Pasadena, Texas< 119. Brownsville, Texas< 120. Boise, Idaho. 121. Garden Grove, Calif. 122. Mesquite, Texas 123. Westminster, Colo. |
124. Manchester, N.H. |
248. Jacksonville, Fla. 249. Portland, Ore. 250. Los Angeles. 251. Victorville, Calif. 252. Bellflower, Calif. 253. Glendale, Ariz. 254. New Bedford, Mass. 255. Pomona, Calif. 256. Racine, Wis. 257. Aurora, Colo. 258. Elizabeth, N.J. 259. Rialto, Calif. 260. Savannah, Ga. 261. Paterson, N.J. 262. Seattle. 263. Albany, Ga. 264. Southfield, Mich. 265. Lancaster, Calif. 266. Waco, Texas< 267. Fresno, Calif. 268. Killeen, Texas< 269. Greensboro, N.C. 270. San Francisco. 271. Fort Lauderdale, Fla. 272. Durham, N.C. 273. Fort Smith, Ark. 274. Tallahassee, Fla. 275. South Bend, Ind. 276. Lansing, Mich. 277. Federal Way, Wash. 278. Huntsville, Ala. 279. Albuquerque, N.M. 280. Visalia, Calif. 281. Winston-Salem, N.C. 282. Providence, R.I. 283. Everett, Wash. 284. Davenport, Iowa. 285. Hammond, Ind. 286. Roanoke, Va. 287. Norfolk, Va. 288. Fayetteville, N.C. 289. Kent, Wash. 290. Akron, Ohio. 291. St. Paul, Minn. 292. Wilmington, N.C. 293. Portsmouth, Va. 294. Oklahoma City 295. Columbia, S.C. 296. Canton, Ohio. 297. Knoxville, Tenn. 298. Montgomery, Ala. 299. Allentown, Pa. 300. North Las Vegas, Nev. 301. Beaumont, Texas< 302. Las Vegas, Nev. 303. Denver. 304. Yakima, Wash. 305. Syracuse, N.Y. 306. Longview, Texas 307. Pittsburgh. 308. Tucson, Ariz. 309. Bridgeport, Conn. 310. Inglewood, Calif. 311. Pompano Beach, Fla. 312. Albany, N.Y. 313. Phoenix. 314. Boston. 315. Chattanooga, Tenn. 316. Tampa, Fla. 317. Jersey City, N.J. 318. Milwaukee. 319. Miami Beach, Fla. 320. Indianapolis, Ind. 321. Shreveport, La. 322. Sacramento, Calif. 323. St. Petersburg, Fla. 324. Tacoma, Wash. 325. Houston. 326. Columbus, Ohio. 327. Miami. 328. Baton Rouge, La. 329. Charlotte, N.C. 330. Jackson, Miss. 331. Toledo, Ohio. 332. Macon, Ga. 333. Nashville, Tenn. 334. Rochester, N.Y. 335. Tulsa, Okla. 336. Stockton, Calif. 337. Hartford, Conn. 338. Dallas. 339. Miami Gardens, Fla. 340. Buffalo, N.Y. 341. Springfield, Mass. 342. Kansas City, Kan. 343. Philadelphia. 344. West Palm Beach, Fla. 345. Minneapolis. 346. Dayton, Ohio. 347. Orlando, Fla. 348. San Bernardino, Calif. 349. Little Rock, Ark. 350. Newark, N.J. 351. Reading, Pa. 352. North Charleston, S.C. 353. Washington. 354. Cincinnati. 355. Atlanta. 356. Kansas City, Mo. 357. Richmond, Va. 358. Trenton, N.J. 359. Memphis, Tenn. 360. Baltimore. 361. Richmond, Calif. 362. Gary, Ind. 363. Youngstown, Ohio. 364. Oakland, Calif. 365. Cleveland. 366. Birmingham, Ala. 367. Camden, N.J. 368. Compton, Calif. 369. Flint, Mich. 370. Detroit. 371. St. Louis |
This story was originally published in the The Telegraph of Nashua, N.H., all rights reserved, nashuatelegraph.com
