By Breven Honda
Mesquite has once again been named the safest city in Nevada.
According to research released last month by SafeWise, Mesquite ranked as the state’s safest city based on crime rates. It marks the third consecutive year the city has earned the Safest City designation in the Silver State.
Mesquite Police Chief Tracy Fails said the recognition reflects not only the work of the police department but also the community.
“We’ve got a great community, and the police department is only part of that,” Fails said. “We get so much cooperation from our community that we can’t do it alone.
“We’re safe because we have good streets. We’re safe because we have a nice, clean town. We’re safe because we have good citizens, and all of that working together makes a safe city.”
The SafeWise research was conducted independently.
Mesquite’s property and violent crime rates both declined from 2025. Property crime fell from 12.1 to 10.1, while the violent crime rate dropped from 1.9 to 1.2. The report also noted there were no murders in the city during the research period.
SafeWise also reported that Mesquite’s property crime rate has been declining since 2023.
Fails said maintaining those numbers is partly due to the department’s visible presence in the community.
“That is the proactive approach, being visible and being out there,” Fails said. “Those are definite results of officers working hard.”
Fails, who is in his third month since the interim tag was removed from his title, said he hopes to continue lowering those numbers.
One challenge is staffing.
The national average is about 2.5 officers per 1,000 residents. With a population nearing 24,000, Mesquite would need roughly 60 officers to meet that benchmark. The department currently has about half that number.
“We’re way behind that,” Fails said. “Our staffing levels have not kept up with our population growth.
“But city budgets play a factor there. You can only pay the people you have the money to pay. It is what it is, but we’re doing our best. I think we do a great job for the staffing we have, and we’re going to keep doing it.”
Rounding out the top five cities in the SafeWise rankings were Henderson, North Las Vegas, Sparks and Las Vegas.
SafeWise said population differences are accounted for when compiling its data.
Mesquite was one of four Nevada cities — along with Henderson, Las Vegas and Reno — that saw decreases in both property and violent crime.
SafeWise also conducted a statewide survey on crime perceptions. Two-thirds of Nevada respondents, 67%, said they worry about violent crime daily. That figure is down from 72% in previous years but remains the fourth-highest rate in the country.
Fails said maintaining a proactive approach will be key as the department looks to preserve or improve the city’s crime rates and earn the designation for a fourth consecutive year.
“Just being proactive, doing our best to identify problems and address them sooner rather than later,” Fails said. “We focus on identifying problems and putting the resources we have toward them.”
