NJ's 100 Safest Towns In 2017: Is Your Community On The List?

A security industry adviser has its own idea of what it considers to be a safe town in New Jersey. And you may be surprised by what you see.

Safewise has rated the 100 towns in the state that it considers "shining examples of New Jersey’s commitment to safe streets for all citizens."

The outfit noted that since November 2016, the state has captured 150 violent offenders, thanks to the statewide Violent Crime Initiative. "The program was so successful that Attorney General Christopher Porrino recently announced another new directive designed to thwart victim and witness intimidation."

Overall, New Jersey is below the national average for property crime, claiming the third-lowest property crime rate in the country, according to Safewise. Of the towns on the list, 84 percent reported fewer than 25 burglaries, and a full 36 of them reported fewer than 100 total property crimes to the FBI in 2015.

Violent crime is just as rare in these New Jersey safe cities: 88 percent experienced fewer than 10 total violent crimes, 92 percent cited zero counts of murder during the reporting period, and no city reported more than five robberies. In fact, your chance of falling victim to violent crime in all but one of the cities on Safewise's list is less than one in 1,000.

Safewise paid particular attention to the top 50 cities, highlighting their low violent and property crime rates. Here is the list:

1. Washington Township: Morris County; Violent Crime per 1,000: 0.11; Property Crime per 1,000: 1.76
2. River Vale Township: Violent Crime per 1,000: 0.00; Property Crime per 1,000: 2.48
3. Bernards Township: Violent Crime per 1,000: 0.11; Property Crime per 1,000: 3.27
4. Kinnelon: Violent Crime per 1,000: 0.10; Property Crime per 1,000: 3.36
5. Clinton Township: Violent Crime per 1,000: 0.31; Property Crime per 1,000: 3.21
6. Hillsdale: Violent Crime per 1,000: 0.10; Property Crime per 1,000: 3.52
7. Chatham Township: Violent Crime per 1,000: 0.09; Property Crime per 1,000: 3.75
8. Colts Neck Township: Previous Rank: 32; Violent Crime per 1,000: 0.20; Property Crime per 1,000: 3.68
9. Warren Township: Violent Crime per 1,000: 0.19; Property Crime per 1,000: 3.73
10. Monroe Township, Middlesex County: Violent Crime per 1,000: 0.07; Property Crime per 1,000: 3.85
11. Sparta Township: Violent Crime per 1,000: 0.26; Property Crime per 1,000: 3.85
12. Ridgefield: Violent Crime per 1,000: 0.26; Property Crime per 1,000: 3.88
13. Woolwich Township: Violent Crime per 1,000: 0.41; Property Crime per 1,000: 3.78
14. Mahwah: Violent Crime per 1,000: 0.19; Property Crime per 1,000: 4.10
15. New Milford: Violent Crime per 1,000: 0.18; Property Crime per 1,000: 4.12
16. Berkeley Heights: Violent Crime per 1,000: 0.00; Property Crime per 1,000: 4.34
17. Madison: Violent Crime per 1,000: 0.25; Property Crime per 1,000: 4.14
18. New Providence: Violent Crime per 1,000: 0.00: Property Crime per 1,000: 4.50
19. Wyckoff: Violent Crime per 1,000: 0.18; Property Crime per 1,000: 4.33
20. Montgomery Township: Violent Crime per 1,000: 0.26; Property Crime per 1,000: 4.38
21. Bergenfield: Violent Crime per 1,000: 0.25; Property Crime per 1,000: 4.47
22. Ringwood: Violent Crime per 1,000: 0.40; Property Crime per 1,000: 4.36
23. Randolph Township: Violent Crime per 1,000: 0.19; Property Crime per 1,000: 4.61
24. Branchburg Township: Violent Crime per 1,000: 0.14; Property Crime per 1,000: 4.67
25. Dumont: Violent Crime per 1,000: 0.17; Property Crime per 1,000: 4.80
26. Raritan Township: Violent Crime per 1,000: 0.54; Property Crime per 1,000: 4.49
27. Franklin Lakes: Violent Crime per 1,000: 0.09; Property Crime per 1,000: 5.06
28. Glen Rock: Violent Crime per 1,000: 0.17; Property Crime per 1,000: 5.02
29. Oakland: Violent Crime per 1,000: 0.23; Property Crime per 1,000: 4.96
30. Waterford Township: Violent Crime per 1,000: 0.47; Property Crime per 1,000: 4.84
31. Palisades Park: Violent Crime per 1,000: 1.02; Property Crime per 1,000: 4.36
32. Denville Township: Violent Crime per 1,000; Property Crime per 1,000: 5.22
33. Hasbrouck Heights: Violent Crime per 1,000: 0.33; Property Crime per 1,000: 5.25
34. Hillsborough: Violent Crime per 1,000: 0.20; Property Crime per 1,000: 5.40
35. Morris Township: Violent Crime per 1,000: 0.27; Property Crime per 1,000: 5.40
36. Hopatcong: Violent Crime per 1,000: 0.48; Property Crime per 1,000: 5.42
37. Plainsboro: Violent Crime per 1,000: 0.26; Property Crime per 1,000: 5.70
38. River Edge: Violent Crime per 1,000: 0.26; Property Crime per 1,000: 5.77
39. Hopewell Township: Violent Crime per 1,000: 0.16; Property Crime per 1,000: 5.93
40. Tenafly: Violent Crime per 1,000: 0.13; Property Crime per 1,000: 6.05
41. Marlboro: Violent Crime per 1,000: 0.46; Property Crime per 1,000: 5.78
42. Fort Lee: Violent Crime per 1,000: 0.75; Property Crime per 1,000: 5.88
43. Florence Township: Violent Crime per 1,000: 0.89; Property Crime per 1,000: 5.80
44. Jefferson: Violent Crime per 1,000: 0.60; Property Crime per 1,000: 6.09
45. Verona: Violent Crime per 1,000: 0.15; Property Crime per 1,000: 6.75
46. Wanaque: Violent Crime per 1,000: 0.69; Property Crime per 1,000: 6.34
47. Westwood: Violent Crime per 1,000: 0.45; Property Crime per 1,000: 6.62
48. Cranford: Violent Crime per 1,000: 0.17; Property Crime per 1,000: 6.90
49. Lincoln Park: Violent Crime per 1,000: 0.38; Property Crime per 1,000: 6.78
50. Readington Township: Violent Crime per 1,000: 0.25; Property Crime per 1,000: 7.05
51. Florham Park
52. Hawthorne
53. West Caldwell
54. Hammonton
55. Mount Olive
56. Montville
57. Manalapan
58. Medford
59. Middletown
60. Parsippany-Troy Hills
61. Pequannock
62. Summit
63. Barnegat
64. Ridgewood
65. Manchester
66. Stafford Township
67. Scotch Plains
68. Holmdel
69. Roselle Park
70. Westfield
71. Jackson Township
72. Cliffside Park
73. Cedar Grove
74. Princeton
75. West Milford
76. East Greenwich Township
77. Robbinsville
78. Ramsey
79. Middlesex Boro
80. East Windsor
81. Little Ferry
82. Bordentown Township
83. Bridgewater
84. Nutley
85. South Brunswick
86. Piscataway
87. Clark
88. Fairview
89. Highland Park
90. Howell
91. Springfield
92. Livingston
93. Sayreville
94. Harrison
95. South River
96. Aberdeen
97. Wall Township
98. Pompton Lakes
99. Roxbury Township
100. Point Pleasant

Safewise photo