Three South Bay Cities Make Top 50 Safe List

MENLO PARK, CA -- What are the top 50 safest cities in California? The list is out by SafeWise, a Salt Lake City-based home security company. Some will surprise you, while others not.

Within the top 30, the Silicon Valley may boast three cities deemed safe. Menlo Park was ranked No. 11. Palo Alto came in at No. 20, squeezing by Cupertino at No. 27.

With a population of 33,726, Menlo Park registered a low violent crime rate at .89 per 1,000. That's less than a person threatened with bodily harm for every 1,000 people. Property crime was higher at 18.47 for every 1,000 who report it.

To compile the report, SafeWise analysts reviewed the most recent crime data released by the Federal Bureau of Investigations in 2016. The study labeled violent crimes as aggravated assault, murder, rape and robbery. Property crimes are considered burglary, arson, larceny and theft (of belongings and vehicles). Cities that fell below population thresholds or failed to submit a complete FBI crime report were excluded from the ranking system.

Palo Alto, with its 67,317 residents, registered barely a person harmed for every 1,000 people at 1.08. Property crime came in as a little higher than its southern peninsula neighbor to the north -- Menlo Park.

"Palo Alto has always had a low crime rate, especially when it comes to violent crimes. Our officers are pro-active when they are on patrol, and it is our goal to keep our city safe," spokeswoman Janine DeLaVega said.

To the south in Santa Clara County, Cupertino was ranked as No. 27 with its population of 60,948. Violent crime was 1.16 for every 1,000 people in the tech region. Property crime was low as well, with 16.36 people having reported calls involving the taking of belongings and goods.

Danville and San Ramon ranked the highest in the San Francisco Bay Area, with the former holding the top honor and the latter coming in at No. 3.

"We were impressed to find California's 50 safest cities reported an average of just one violent crime for every 1,000 people -- that's 80 percent lower than the U.S. average, according to the most recent FBI crime report. Property crime rates were also quite low, with well over half of the cities reporting fewer than 20 crimes of this type per 1,000 people," SafeWise security analyst Alexia Chianis said.

The organization's full rankings are shown here https://www.safewise.com/blog/safest-cities-california/.

--Image via Shutterstock