Village of Homer. (Photo Source: Kevin L. Smith/The Cortland Voice)
The village of Homer has been recognized as the fourth-safest place in the United States, according to a recent study from CCTV Camera World (a leading distributor of surveillance equipment).
The study compiles the crime rate data of 7,000 U.S. cities based on 2020 Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) records.
Crime rate is based on the number of violent crimes per 100,000 residents. The crimes included in this study are murder, rape, and assault, property crimes, burglary, larceny, motor vehicle offenses, and arson.
The village of Homer has a crime rate of 32.46. Outside of Homer, New York State is also home to 10 of the 25 safest cities in America.
“I could not be more proud of this village and our amazing police department,” Village mayor Hal McCabe said.
Homer police chief Robert Pitman said he felt “humbled” after reading the study.
“Credit goes to the officers in our department and also a lot of credit to the folks in our community, “Pitman said. “We all work together to solve problems.”
Pitman noted that the village being one of the top safest municipalities in the country is the fruit of “hard work.”
“It shows that our hard work has paid off in the last couple years,” he said. “We train our officers to do the right thing. That has really paid off for us. I never set out to be recognized like this, but it is really nice to be recognized. It is really nice to have a community that is safe and a great place for people to live and visit.”
Pitman also said residents being neighborly plays a huge role in the community’s overall safety.
“Neighbors here get along. They keep an eye on each other’s residence,” Pitman said. “Neighbors trust each other and make this a very safe and open community.”
Pitman also commended officers for their approach to policing.
“Our police department is a community-based police department,” he said. “We work with the community to solve problems.”
Mayor McCabe noted there is a healthy relationship between the community and the village’s police department.
“Residents of the village pay fairly stiff village property taxes, and a large percentage goes to our police department,” he said. “If you ever ask residents if they would be willing to reduce or eliminate the department in return for lower taxes, they almost universally reject the idea.”
McCabe added officers’ involvement in the community yielded great results.
“Our residents love our police department, how much they do for us, and just how involved they are with our different events, parades, charity drives and other events,” he said. “I can’t overstate how thrilled I am with our department, staff, officers, and chief. It also proves that we are correct in ensuring our department is fully funded. The results speak for themselves.”
