The 10 Most Dangerous Cities in New Mexico

It is easy to watch the news and look to Facebook in order to see the most current crimes that are happening in this town or that. Most times people will see a crime occurring far away from where they live and be comforted that they are not associated with the affected area. New Mexico is known quite well as a crime-ridden state, existing as perhaps one of the worst in America. Where other states might boast dangerous cities to live, New Mexico is by far and large able to match up without hesitation and with little effort. Its top ten most dangerous cities are easily more dangerous than many other crime-infested cities in the country.

As if this wasn’t enough to guarantee such a claim, the states violent crimes went up by over six percent between 2012-13. This is the greatest increase among any state. Only Alaska was greater in its crime rate. So with that in mind, here are the top ten most dangerous cities in New Mexico.

1. Gallup

Gallup is located in the northwestern part of the state, and carries the title of Most Patriotic Small Town in America as of 2013. As of now the city is one of the most criminally active locations in the country. The chance of being a victim of a violent crime is 1 in 48, while the chance of being a victim of theft or arson is 1 in 10. Its population just just over 22,000 people, and its crime rates for violent crime and property crime are both classified as 1.

2. Taos

This small town is located in north-central part of New Mexico, in the Sangre de Cristo Mountains. Its population is under 6,000, but it’s violent crime rank is 3 while its property crime rank is 2. Only a few years ago it experienced a severe rise in violent crime, roughly 35 percent. There is a 1 in 86 chance that residents in Taos might be a victim of a violent crime, while there is a 1 in 12 chance of being a victim of a property crime. Taos is considered to be the second worst place to live in all of New Mexico.

3. Socorro

With just under 9,000 residents, Socorro’s violent crime rank is a 6, while its property crime rank is a 5. The city is situated in the Rio Grande Valley, in central New Mexico. While it is twice as safe as Gallup, it still earns its place as third on the list. During the period of time between 2011 to 2013, violent crime in Socorro took a modest climb of 14 percent, while property crime rose by 20 percent. What this meant was that Socorro residents have a 1 in 20 chance of becoming a victim of theft or arson.

4. Artesia

One of the larger cities on the list, Artesia has a population of well over 11,000 residents, and is rated as a 2 on the violent crime scale, while it is an 11 on the property crime scale. It is known as the City of Champions and is located in southeastern New Mexico. It is second only Gallup when it comes to violent crimes. From 2011 to 2013 property crime was on the decline, dropping by 8 percent, but violent crimes rose by 11 percent. There is a 1 in 79 chance of being a victim of a violent crime in Artesia.

5. Deming

Deming has almost 15,000 residents and is ranked modestly as 5 on the violent crime scale, while it is ranked as 8 on the property crime scale. It is only a short drive from the Mexican border and is located in the southwestern portion of New Mexico. It is the fifth most dangerous city within New Mexico’s borders and has come by this listing honestly. From 2011 to 2013 the violent crimes in Deming increased by roughly 25 percent. This left the residents of Deming with a 1 percent chance of becoming the victim of a violent crime.

6. Albuquerque

Easily the most populated city in New Mexico, Albuquerque has well over a half million residents and is ranked as a 3 on the property crime scale, but is ranked 10 on the violent crime scale. It is the least violent of most cities in New Mexico, but is still high on the property crime rank. It had a minor increase in violent crimes between 2011 and 2013, and also experienced a 9 percent raise in property crime. There is at this time a 1 in 18 chance of being a victim of theft or arson in this city.

7. Clovis

Clovis is located close to the border that New Mexico shares with Texas. It is only marginally safer than Albuquerque when speaking of its property crime. It has a population of close to 40,000 residents and is ranked high on the property crime scale at a 4, but low on the violent crime scale at 12. Clovis saw a 7 percent reduction as far as property crime went from 2011 to 2013. It also saw a 29 percent rise in violent crime during that same period of time.

8. Hobbs

Hobbs has well over 35,000 residents and is ranked modestly on the violent crime scale at 11 and on the property crime scale at 9. The city experienced a population spike of about 20 percent in the past decade. Property crime has also increased during this time by roughly 10 percent. Its violent crime also ascended quickly by around 83 percent. This left the residents of Hobbs with a 1 in 119 probability of becoming a victim of a violent crime. This is close to the same as the higher-ranked city of Socorro.

9. Las Vegas

Populated by well over 13,000 residents, Las Vegas rates a 4 on the violent crime scale, and a modest 17 on property crime. It is considered to be one of the top five most violent cities in New Mexico. Unlike its neighboring cities, Las Vegas has seen its crime rates go down in the recent past, as the violent crimes have been reduced by around 28 percent, while the property crimes have declined close to 38 percent. Las Vegas residents had a 1 in 90 chance of being made the victim of a violent crime in past years. As of now it is a 1 in 116 chance.

10. Farmington

Farmington has a population of nearly 46,000 residents and is ranked 9 on the violent crime scale and 12 on the property crime scale. It is considered to be the commercial hub of northwestern New Mexico and is the last city to be considered on the list of the top ten most dangerous cities in the state. At one time its violent crime rate would have allowed it to sit among the top 5 most violent locations in New Mexico. However, between 2011 to 2013 its violent crime rate experienced a severe drop of 73 percent, which greatly improved where it sat on the list.

Conclusion

Eliminating all bias and opinion, these cities listed above are, statistically-speaking, the most dangerous cities in New Mexico. The ten cities are spread fairly evenly throughout the state, with no single city being able to stand out as being more dangerous than the others.