Laredo Morning Times staff file

WalletHub compared 182 cities using 42 key indicators of safety -- the report overall featured a total score while the information was narrowed down to three main grading metrics. The city sat No. 4 in home and community safety, No. 24 in natural-disaster risk and No. 107 in financial safety.

In one of the key indicators, the report also ranked Laredo as No. 5 in fewest hate crimes per capita.

Laredo had a total score of 83.96. It finished behind only Columbia, Maryland (85.99) and Nashua, New Hampshire (84.44) for safest cities in the U.S., and ahead of Portland, Maine (83.49) and Warwick, Rhode Island (83.19) in the top five. 

Brownsville (79.70) was the closest Texas city at No. 20, while the rest of the top 100 featured Irving (77.06) in 49th, Grand Prairie (76.65) in 55th, Plano (73.50) in 79th, San Antonio (73.07) in 86th, Arlington (72.42) in 95th, El Paso (72.32) in 97th, and Lubbock (72.29) in 99th. 

Other major Texas cities included Austin (70.23) in 125th, Corpus Christi (68.27) in 143rd, Houston (67.18) in 153rd and Dallas (62.19) in 166th.

Previously, Laredo also ranked as the No. 13 safest city in the United States by SmartAsset’s 2022 list of Safest Cities in America which was released in April.

With the good news, local and statewide officials along with members of the community shared their views on the report and what it means for them. 

"We are delighted to have been recognized and ranked third in the nation. That is a significant improvement over 13," said City of Laredo Mayor Pete Saenz, referencing the SmartAsset study from six months earlier. "The bulk of the credit goes to the law enforcement community that we have here and their presence from federal, state and local that makes us the city who we are, and we appreciate all of their contribution to our city and our border."

Laredo Police Department Chief Claudio Trevino Jr. also applauded the high ranking of the city and stated that it is something that goes to show how important the role of their department is to ensure safety in the city. He thanked everyone from the various law enforcement agencies that operate in the area to concern citizens reporting potential crimes as the reasons why safety is a top priority. 

"The Wallethub report only validates what this police department works hard to attain: to create a safe community to work, play and raise a family in," Trevino said. "The Laredo Police Department credits the men and women in uniform out on the front lines doing excellent work along with the skilled investigators and supervisors making good criminal cases and seeking justice for victims. Another factor is our collaborations with other local, state and federal law enforcement agencies which greatly contribute to the safety and livability of this community. Last and certainly not least, we have to thank the citizenry of Laredo for their trust and willingness to take a stand against crime. We are all in this together, and without continuing to dialogue with police, our community will not succeed and be as safe as it possibly can be."

Another official who congratulated the high ranking -- and that of Brownsville as well, which ranked No. 20 in the Wallethub report -- was Texas Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick, who visited the city on Tuesday and spoke briefly with LMT on the matter.

"When I was a senator and I came here to tour the border early on, one of the things that all the mayors, police chiefs and customs officers told me about how safe it was because the criminals are moving through," Patrick said. "We did have a time when there was a lot of hit-and-run crimes going back-and-forth across the border such as carjackings, but we changed some rules and laws and focused on that, and that pretty much eliminated it."

According to the lieutenant governor, he states that the border is safer thanks to the state’s investment of $4 billion in border security alone during the fiscal year 2022. He states that the amount is almost 10 times more than the usual $400 million that the state spends on such type of security for the past 10 years, and he credited the heightened security of the area due to the fact that there is more law enforcement along the border than anywhere else in the state. 

"When the criminals come through, they move out as fast as they can," the lieutenant governor said. "I am glad that the border is safe, but all those criminals are going to Dallas and into Houston and going into other states. I think that this is a tribute to what the state of Texas is doing to keep the border as safe as we can, and it is a tribute to your local law enforcement as well."

Webb County Sheriff Martin Cuellar stated that he was delighted that the city was found to be considered the third safest city in the country. 

"I think that this is due to the fact that all of the law enforcement agencies work together and helps everyone do their job," Cuellar said. "One agency cannot do the job by itself, as we need different people and different organizations to maintain order in this community, and that is what we do."

Ordinary citizens also voiced their opinions about the ranking, with many feeling content while also expressed they were surprised by the news. 

"Well, they can say Laredo is boring, but honestly nothing really bad happens here," local Jose Castillo said. "Yes, we do have murders, drug and human smuggling, and other major crimes, but none of these mainly affect the common folk directly, but rather it is something where the police are involved and the criminals. Maybe when it comes to property theft we might have a problem, but overall I feel safe in Laredo most of all the time and can also be out and about at all times of the day and night."

Another individual who finds the report to be accurate is Richard Torres, who states that he also feels safe throughout the city and that it is the only city he has lived in where he feels that the police can go anywhere without fear of entering a place and also make sure that people who live in the south and north have the same access. 

"For the size of the city, I believe that there is a lot of police officers and a lot of state and federal assistance that helps us stay safe, and it shows," Torres said. "Are there criminals? Yes. Is there petty crime? Yes. But, these fail in comparison to what happens in other big cities in our country, and that is why this report is not as surprising."

Tina Suarez, who also lives in the city, states that she was very surprised by the report. In fact, she said she did not find it to be truthful at first. 

"Honestly, I am very surprised," Suarez said. "Yes, the city is fine and there has been no major crimes, and when they happen, they do not affect the majority of the community. But I do not feel safe going to downtown late at night and even sometimes during the day. There are a lot of homeless people and also there is always the threat of fights in nightclubs and all that, which shows that it is not completely safe to go there."

jorge.vela@lmtonline.com