Report: Washington Is Home To One Of The Safest Cities In America

BELLEVUE, WA — The United States in 2018 nearly had its lowest crime rate in the last 30 years, and Washington was home to one of the safest cities in America, according to financial news site 24/7 Wall St.

The America’s Safest Cities report ranked metro areas with at least 100,000 people, using several different criteria.

Bellevue finished 24th on the overall list.

• 2018 Violent Crime Rate: 132.1 per 100,000 people
• 2018 Homicides: 0
• Poverty Rate: 7.4%
• 2018 Unemployment Rate: 3.2%

As for 2019, April saw Bellevue's first homicide in more than three years. Four suspects were arrested last month. According to data from the Bellevue Police Department, there were 66 robberies, 62 aggravated assaults, 19 rapes, and one murder reported between January and October 2019. That compares to 87 robberies, 76 aggravated assaults, 25 rapes and no homicides reported for all of 2018.

To find the 50 safest cities in the United States, 24/7 Wall St. went through the FBI’s 2018 Uniform Crime Report and found the total number and rates of murder, non-negilent manslaughter, rape, robbery and aggravated assault.

Thel site also used the U.S. Census Bureau’s 2017 American Community Survey to find the median household income and poverty rates for the cities.

Irvine, California ranked as the safest city in the nation, followed by Naperville, Illinois and Murrieta, California.

“The cities with the lowest violent crime rates tend to share several other socioeconomic characteristics as well — notably, economic prosperity. Indeed, the vast majority of the cities on the list have a low unemployment rate and a high median household income,” authors of the America’s Safest Cities report said.

Here are the top 10 safest cities in the United States:

1. Irvine, California
2. Naperville, Illinois
3. Murrieta, California
4. McAllen, Texas
5. Frisco, Texas
6. Gilbert, Arizona
7. Pearland, Texas
8. Thousand Oaks, California
9. Glendale, California
10. League City, Texas