CQ Press released City Crime Rankings 2008-2009: Crime in Metropolitan America on Nov. 24, 2008, and for the fourth consecutive year Round Rock ranks among the top 20 safest cities in the country. Round Rock ranked No. 19 in this year’s survey.
“Round Rock has ranked among America's safest cities ever since we reached 75,000 in population and became eligible for the survey – and that’s not just coincidence,” Mayor Alan McGraw said. “Our citizens demand the best in public safety, and our police department delivers. I can’t say enough about the great job our law enforcement officers do to keep this community safe.”
The crime rate rankings of the cities and metropolitan areas are calculated using six crime categories: murder, rape, robbery, aggravated assault, burglary, and motor vehicle theft.
“Public safety has long been a City Council priority, and we take great pride in maintaining a safe community, even as we approach 100,000 population,” City Manager Jim Nuse said. “This ranking validates what our citizen survey tells us, that our residents feel safe.”
In the 2008 City survey of 400 residents, 88 percent said they felt safe walking alone in their neighborhood at night.
“Our officers work hard to keep this community safe, and partner daily with our residents and businesses to make that happen,” Chief Bryan Williams said. “While we appreciate the praise we receive as a department when these rankings are released, we know it couldn’t be done without the support of our City Council, other departments and, most importantly, the community.”
In 2007 and 2006, Round Rock was No. 13 in the survey. In 2005, Round Rock ranked No. 8
The rankings include all cities of at least 75,000 residents that reported crime data to the FBI in the categories noted for calendar year 2007. In the most recent survey, 356 metropolitan areas and 397 cities were considered using statistics released by the Uniform Crime Reporting Program of the FBI on Sept. 15, 2008.
The Austin-Round Rock metro area ranked No. 5 among metros with a population of 500,000 or more.
