7 of California's top 10 safest cities are in Orange County, report says
Seven of the 10 safest cities in California are all located in Orange County, according to a newly released ranking by the home security company SafeWise.
None of Los Angeles County's cities ranked in the top 10 of the 2024 report.
The 10 safest cities in the state, according to SafeWise, are:
1. Rancho Santa Margarita
2. Aliso Viejo
3. Yorba Linda
4. Laguna Niguel
5. Mission Viejo
6. Lake Forest
7. Lincoln
8. Poway
9. Rocklin
10. Irvine
Other Southern California cities in the top 20 include San Clemente and the Inland Empire's Murrieta, Fontana and Menifee.
SafeWise said it compiled the rankings by using the most up-to-date FBI data -- including statistics on violent crime, property crime, gun violence and package theft.
However, the FBI has discouraged the ranking of city safety based on crime data alone. The agency says such lists do not reflect how effective law enforcement is in a city.
Other factors that can set a city apart include the number of teenage and young adult residents, the homeless population, the economic status of the area, and the criminal justice system in the region.
Orange County's overrepresentation on the list comes about a month after an advertising campaign was launched with the aim of sending a message to shoplifters and other criminals throughout Southern California: "Crime doesn't pay in Orange County."
The district attorney's office put up several billboards across the area -- outside of Orange County -- in an attempt to deter criminals from traveling there to commit crimes. The campaign is also on bumper stickers and bus signs.
"I want thieves to understand this is not Los Angeles County," said District Attorney Todd Spitzer in March. "We still prosecute in Orange County and just because LA is very lenient on people who steal - if you come to Orange County we're going to prosecute you to the fullest extent of the law."
