WEST VIRGINIA (NEXSTAR) – One city in West Virginia has just been ranked among the “safest” in the U.S., according to a new study.
According to a recent study on U.S. crime, Oak Hill, West Virginia, was ranked the 80th safest city in the country. In 2020, the city’s total crime rate came out to just 137.21 crimes per 100,000 residents.
Oak Hill, meanwhile, has only about 8,179 residents, according to the 2020 Census — meaning there were roughly 11 crimes in the city that year.
The study came from CCTV Camera World, a U.S. security and investigations company. Using FBI data from 2020, the study ranked the top 100 “safest cities” in the U.S. by the total crime rate, which was expressed by the number of crimes per 100,000 residents. To find the crime rate, analysts totaled all reported violent and property crimes — the former including murder, rape, assault, etc., and the latter consisting of burglary, larceny-theft, motor vehicle theft, and arson.
Across the country, 7,000 cities were evaluated based on their overall crime rates.
The top five safest cities in the U.S. are listed below:
- Wayland, Massachusetts
- Northport, New York
- Milton, Wisconsin
- Homer, New York
- Coxsackle, New York
According to the study’s findings, New York had most “safest” cities on the list, with 16 cities ranked among the top 100. Wisconsin followed with nine cities ranking in the top 100.
The overall murder rate in the U.S., however, grew by a record 30% in 2020, the study’s authors noted. That data may concern Americans, even after Pew Research cited FBI and BJS data showing crime has been falling for the last three decades.
