fontana 15th safest

ontana ranked 15th safest city in U.S.; 4th in state

By Jim Steinberg, Staff Writerjim.steinberg@inlandnewspapers.com l @FontanaNow on TwitterPosted:   08/06/2013 09:04:06 AM PDTUpdated:   08/07/2013 09:20:55 PM PDTFONTANA -- This city has been ranked as the 15th safest in America, according to Business Insider, an Internet-only publication that used the FBI's preliminary 2012 unified crime report data for 2012 to compile city rankings.Fontana ranked fourth in the state. Irvine ranked first in the nation in safety."Those of us who live here know we have been a safe city for many years," Mayor Acquanetta Warren said. "Public safety has always been our No. 1 priority and through hard work coupled with an excellent police force, Fontana has received national recognition."Police Chief Rod Jones said that much of the credit goes to the community."I am proud of the men and women of the Fontana Police Department and the residents, who are actively involved in working alongside us," he said.Upon hearing the study conclusions -- which were based on cities with populations of 200,000 or more -- Pedro Flores, 40, of Pomona, said, "Do you mean 15th safest in the state?""The whole country? Wow, I'm surprised."Growing up in El Monte, Flores had an impression that parts of Fontana could be pretty rough.But upon reflection, Flores said he has a cousin that has lived in Fontana for years, "and never had any problems."

Advertisementclass="TXBody">Luis Lopez, 36, who has lived in Fontana for three years said he hears more about crime in Fontana than he did living in Victorville and therefore concludes that crime is more of a problem here.Lopez said, to be fair, he doesn't spend much time in Fontana, other than sleeping.His job is in another city and he spends his recreational time in Redlands or Riverside.Francisco Flores, 29, who has lived in Fontana all of his life, said that in the last 10 or 15 years Fontana's crime situation has improved dramatically.But Deana Perez, 35, also a lifelong Fontana resident, said that Fontana "has remained pretty much the same over the years."From what family and friends say, crime has increased tremendously in the High Desert, she said.Fred Rodriguez, 25, said that he is puzzled about the crime ranking because of the low income levels of many residents and the poor rankings among more than a few of the schools."Well, since we live here, this is good to hear," he said.Damaris Blanco, 18, who graduated from Fontana High School this year said she walked to and from school all four years "and nothing bad happened" so she is not surprised at the 15th place ranking.Betsy Macias said people ask her if she feels safe working in her downtown retail shop, sometimes until 3 a.m."I tell them yes, because the police drive by all the time," she saidOne day a homeless person who mentally was not well came into her bridal shop on Sierra Avenue, less than a mile from City Hall and the police station."The police came really fast, and the man never bothered me again," she said.Macias, who lives in Colton, said she knows people in her town who don't come to Fontana because patrol policing is very aggressive."I think the police are really on top of things," she said. And that's why the city ranked so high.In its ranking of 15, Fontana registered a murder rate 47 percent below the national average, rape 42 percent below average, and a robbery rate of 27 percent above average.The depressed former automobile manufacturing town of Flint, Mich., ranked the worst in the nation for crime followed by Detroit and Oakland.

I agree to a point. I have definitely seen a difference around this area. Things are overall quiet in most of the city. Fontana PD doesn't play around. You just aren't going to get away with hanging out on the block causing problems without FPD putting a stop to it. Plus the city has grown a hell of a lot in the last 10-15 years, and so the population has grown and much of the newer sides of town are fairly safe. You'll notice that 80% of the Fontana gangs operate outside of Fontana city limits much of the time. Think of CWP on the east side unincorporated, and HHS, NHLs, DBS, "OgS", "DSW", some SF etc on the west side.

LOL.....grade A propaganda. I can't help but to love the great lengths city officials will go to in order to make their city look more desirable. The day that headline was published, it was preceded by these headlines: I didn't make this up, either. You can look them up for yourselves.


"Fontana Lowe's robbed by gunman."


"Fontana burglars steal $40, 000 in electronics from school."


"Kidnapped Fontana man beaten in home,  found dead in burning car"


This announcement reeks of political propaganda, and as an attempt to motivate more people to move into Fontana. It's really a shame when city officials would steep to such levels as to openly lie about a cities crime rate, but it's an unfortunate occurrence that happens all too often. 

The bulk of Fontana's crime happens in unincorporated west Fontana, and in the southern portion of the city, both of which are far from being nice or desirable areas. Fontana may not be a Richmond or San Bernardino, but it sure as hell isn't an Irvine or Calabasas either. 

Nobody I know actually believes this or takes this seriously. It sure made me LOL when I read about it. "Business Insider", the publication which made this claim, is a small, fairly new, and relatively unknown publication.

It should also be noted that this announcement by the publication was said to be  based on FBI preliminary crime reports, but those have yet to be released. And even if they are in fact official, it doesn't negate the fact that many of these numbers are manipulated or under-reported by the time they have been handed over to the feds, so they can be very misleading in many cases.

Certainly is propaganda. I mean, I'd agree that overall things aren't all that bad, but 15th safest in the country??! LOL.

So where does Loma Linda, Rancho Cucamonga, Montclair, Upland, Chino, Redlands etc fall on the list? Because I know damn well these cities are far safer than Fontana. 

But when I see things like this, I have to remind myself that Fontana is so big now, that it is kind of silly to say a city this size is "safe" or dangerous, when there's so different areas within town with different crime rates.

3 Man Forum wrote:Certainly is propaganda. I mean, I'd agree that overall things aren't all that bad, but 15th safest in the country??! LOL.

So where does Loma Linda, Rancho Cucamonga, Montclair, Upland, Chino, Redlands etc fall on the list? Because I know damn well these cities are far safer than Fontana. 

But when I see things like this, I have to remind myself that Fontana is so big now, that it is kind of silly to say a city this size is "safe" or dangerous, when there's so different areas within town with different crime rates.

 Exactly. But the formula they use to calculate these statistics is per every 100,000 residents. This is why you don't any of the other places you've mentioned on that list, because they area small in terms of population. 

This is pure propaganda, simple and plain.

0ManForum wrote:

3 Man Forum wrote:Certainly is propaganda. I mean, I'd agree that overall things aren't all that bad, but 15th safest in the country??! LOL.

So where does Loma Linda, Rancho Cucamonga, Montclair, Upland, Chino, Redlands etc fall on the list? Because I know damn well these cities are far safer than Fontana. 

But when I see things like this, I have to remind myself that Fontana is so big now, that it is kind of silly to say a city this size is "safe" or dangerous, when there's so different areas within town with different crime rates.

 Exactly. But the formula they use to calculate these statistics is per every 100,000 residents. This is why you don't any of the other places you've mentioned on that list, because they area small in terms of population. 

This is pure propaganda, simple and plain.

 Yea there are quite a few robberies but u can't tell me any of u guys feel like u guys are in danger while going to the store. Yea fontana is ugly but it's not a violent city like sb. u see young kids walking around. u hear of a murder every few months.  like someone said u don't see ppl posted up on the block so u don't have those streets that ppl don't want to walk down. it's not the best looking city but I feel 100%  safe

I don't think anyone is disputing that Fontana isn't a "warzone", but the fact of that matter is that Fontana DOES experience crime and violence, and I'd wager that it's far more than what they're claiming in these yearly reports. Placing Fontana among the ranks of cities like Irvine and Calabasas is simply absurd.

0ManForum wrote:I don't think anyone is disputing that Fontana isn't a "warzone", but the fact of that matter is that Fontana DOES experience crime and violence, and I'd wager that it's far more than what they're claiming in these yearly reports. Placing Fontana among the ranks of cities like Irvine and Calabasas is simply absurd.

 I think they base it off of north fontana

Irvine status CONFIRMED.

0ManForum wrote:Fontana man critically injured in attack

Posted:   08/12/2013 07:52:50 AM PDT





A Fontana man suffered critical head injuries when he was attacked by another man on Sunday.
The 33-year-old victim was taken to an area hospital for treatment. His condition is not known.
Police came to the 17800 block of Owen Street at 2:40 a.m. on a report of an assault with a deadly weapon. Officers said the victim was standing next to his vehicle when he was attacked by 26-year-old Andrew Rios of Fontana.
Police did not specify the weapon used, but said the victim suffered a major cut to his head and a skull fracture.
Rios was arrested on suspicion of attempted murder.


Read more:http://www.sbsun.com/ci_23842798/fontana-man-critically-injured-attack#ixzz2bn4hhlpQ

 LOL. shit I know that dude.

Damn, attempted murder...

haha  they have nothing.to put in the news so they put a fight and call it an attack. ppl dont start looking for lil articles ro make fontana seem dangerous. there are a few robberies and a few fights here and but the chances of getting killed or even being attacked are small

The chance of being attacked isn't so small. Lol

yak.yak wrote:haha  they have nothing.to put in the news so they put a fight and call it an attack. ppl dont start looking for lil articles ro make fontana seem dangerous. there are a few robberies and a few fights here and but the chances of getting killed or even being attacked are small

   ^

Nobody is trying to make Fontana seem like anything other than what it is - which is an ordinary California city that's had rapid growth over the past two decades. 

The fact of the matter is that Fontana has gangs, and some pretty low income neighborhoods, both of which aren't typically found in or associated with the "safe city" moniker. As far as I can see, no one is claiming that Fontana is a dangerous place. However, if you go looking for trouble in Fontana, you'll find it.

Not to discredit Fontana's accomplishment (if the numbers are to be believed) but large middle-class coupled with fast growing, suburban development usually comes with the byproduct known as lower per capita crime. It would not have made this list if the development over the last 15 years had not occurred. 


Fontana in the 1990's was much smaller, and the low income to middle class areas ratio was much more one sided. Fontana was primarily a low to lower middle class city at that time. They didn't have all the newer tract homes and suburb housing where they do now. 

Fontana is definitely much safer than it used to be, and relatively safe compared to some other cities in the region, but anybody with two eyes and half a brain can see the absurdity of placing Fontana in the same category of highly regarded towns like Irvine or Simi Valley. That, my friend, is insane, and again, reeks of propaganda.

Yea ur right but south ridge was here in the 90s  but yea every city was worse in the 90s

they just go by whats been reported to the police and documented. till this day I still see crazy shit. when your surrounded by meth addicts in your comunity you aint in a safe envirorment.. gangmembers aint gona call the cops wen they get socked up. fuck the popo Fonta all day!!

Fonta_Life wrote:they just go by whats been reported to the police and documented. till this day I still see crazy shit. when your surrounded by meth addicts in your comunity you aint in a safe envirorment.. gangmembers aint gona call the cops wen they get socked up. fuck the popo Fonta all day!!

15th safest for the popos. cuz they fuck over the inoncent