Red Bay: 12th safest city
Red Bay has been named the 12th Safest City in Alabama by SafeWise organization.
Last year, Red Bay received recognition as the 25th Safest City in Alabama, an amazing feat. But with room for improvement, Red Bay has risen yet higher this year, recently having been named by SafeWise as the 12th Safest City in Alabama.
SafeWise – a community-focused safety organization committed to increasing home and community safety, education, awareness and preparedness – released its report Dec. 21. To compile the results, SafeWise analysts considered the most recent FBI crime data from 2013 to rank the cities included, which all have a minimum population of 2,500 people.
Red Bay, at No. 12 on the list, was cited as having 3.17 violent crimes per 1,000 residents and 14.6 property crimes per 1,000. It came in just behind Fayette, at 2.43 violent crimes per 1,000 and 14.57 property crimes per 1,000.
“It’s quite an honor,” said Red Bay Mayor David Tiffin. “We just don’t have a lot of violent crime in this particular area. That’s something to be thankful for.”
Tiffin expressed his appreciation to the police department and Chief Janna Jackson for their diligent efforts to protect the people of Red Bay. He said Red Bay’s safety is bolstered by the proactive nature of both the police department and the city council – like a couple of years ago when Jackson requested body cameras for the department and the council quickly approved the request. “That’s an indication of how proactive the department is,” Tiffin said.
Jackson, for her part, commended her officers who are on the street daily to prevent crime an apprehend criminals. She also thanked the community, which she said is constantly caring for the police department – like during the holidays, when the department was fed multiple times by churches and other groups.
“It’s really a community effort – everybody looking out for each other,” Jackson said. She also thanked the council for always being behind the department and making continued training possible.
