Report names Logan the safest metro area in the west

LOGAN — An April report has named Logan, Utah as the safest metro area in the western United States. Police say they are proud of the designation but can’t take all the credit for the low crime numbers.

The report was compiled by the Lewis & Clark Law School and was based off of 2013 crime data from the FBI. The numbers were provided by local law enforcement and showed the Logan area, including Cache and Franklin counties, had 55 violent crimes per 100,000 people.

Logan City Police Chief Gary Jensen said the numbers reflect how citizens in the area are keeping law and order in check and law enforcement officers are just a part of the puzzle.

“It’s a greater accolade for Logan and Cache Valley, more so than it is the police department, the sheriff’s office or a combined law enforcement presence,” said Jensen. “We feel like we do a great job and we feel like we are a part of that puzzle but we just have a great place to live. Bottom line.”

Three other metro areas in Utah made the top-10 list including Provo ranked second, St. George ranked fifth and the Ogden-Clearfield area ranked eighth.

The report showed that 25 rapes were reported in the Logan area during 2013 and Jensen said that is a concern to law enforcement.

“I think the fact that we have a college in our community, a university, that might exacerbate those numbers a little bit too, just for the simple fact that there is a lot of young men and women around the town,” said Jensen. “They typically match the demographics of victims for rape.”

Jensen said the police department has several detectives who’s primary focus is investigating sex crimes. Officers also do education classes to help protect people from becoming victims.

The report also showed Logan had 29 aggravated assaults and zero robberies.

In comparison, Anchorage, Alaska was named the most dangerous metro area with 794 violent crimes, 133 rapes, 168 robberies and five murders.

<hr /> <p style=”text-align: center;”>[email protected]

Free News Delivery by Email

Would you like to have the day's news stories delivered right to your inbox every evening? Enter your email below to start!