By Jim Newell
Managing Editor
jnewell@mihomepaper.com
OXFORD TWP. — Oxford Township is ranked as the 14th safest community in Michigan for 2025, according to a new report out from SafeWise, an independent security organization that researches security issues and solutions.
By comparison, other area communities ranked in the top 20 safest cities were Brandon Township at 4th, Oakland Township at 8th, Rochester at 10th and Orion Township at 19th.
“We use the most up-to-date FBI crime data as the backbone of our reports. This means we rely on information that cities across the country report through the FBI Uniform Crime Reporting (UCR) program,” according to the SafeWise rankings report.
Rankings are based on both violent (aggravated assault, murder, rape, and robbery) and property crime (burglary, larceny-theft, and motor vehicle theft) numbers in each city. Arson is excluded from the FBI’s property crime rates and was excluded from the SafeWise report.
For the 2025 reporting year, the most recent FBI data was released in October 2024 and accounts for crimes reported in the calendar year 2023.
According to the SafeWise report, the property crime rate in Oxford Township was up from 3.3 per 1,000 residents in 2024 to 3.6 in 2025, while the violent crime rate stayed the same at 0.5 from 2024 to 2025.
The Oxford Township Substation has 24 personnel including deputies and command officers. Oxford also added a new patrol sergeant position last year, and uses swing shifts to keep more deputies on the road.
“Our crime rate is going down because these guys are doing smart stuff. These guys are doing what has to be done with not enough resources according to FEMA, the FBI, SEMCOG (Southeast Michigan Council of Governments). All their data says we need more people, but these guys are doing smart things to make it safer in Oxford,” said Oxford Township Supervisor Jack Curtis. “Our population continues to grow putting a larger strain on what we have, so we go out and try to have the right amount of personnel.”
Oakland County Sheriff’s Office Lt. Scott Patterson, commander of the Oxford Township substation, said Curtis and the township have always been supportive of the Oxford Substation.
“We’ve always been fiscally responsible to do what we can with what we’ve got. We always ask for things we need, not things we want,” Patterson said. “We always strive to be proactive, not reactive, with the service we have and apply those where they are needed.”
The Oxford Township Substation was second this year behind Addison Township for case closure rate, and were first two years ago.
Oxford Township Det. Sgt. Ric Meza said that when residents do call the police, the deputies know how important it is for those residents in that moment.
“If I’m coming to your house, I want you to get the same service that I would expect at my house. If I’m calling the police, or anyone who’s calling the police, that might not be a huge deal to a lot of people but to you in that moment that’s the most important thing that you have. There’s a reason why you’re calling us,” Meza said. “It doesn’t matter what it is, I’m coming to you in a time of your need. I want to treat you exactly as if I was treating my family.”
Curtis, Patterson and Meza all said that there are deputies and command officers who live in Oxford and see what’s going on while on duty, and off duty.
“A lot of deputies live close to us. They live in our community, they have a vested interest in our community,” Curtis said. “They’re always on duty, even when they’re not on duty.”
“We live here. We hear things. We see things. We monitor different social media outlets. We know things are going on,” Meza said. “Magically, cop cars end up there…things are happening without people realizing it.”
Patterson said that even when they are off duty the deputies and command officers see what’s happening and respond accordingly by calling deputies to a situation, when needed.
“We’ve always been about safety first,” Patterson said, adding that the sheriff’s office does enforce traffic safety compliance. “But our main focus has always been about the safety of the public.”
“You have a safe city because you brought crimes down, not because you go out and write tickets to meet quotas,” Curtis said. “We concentrate on crime and safe activities.”
Patterson said while a simple police presence in the community – at events, on the streets – can be a deterrent, the sheriff’s office tries to proactive instead of reactive to help prevent crimes before they happen, or escalate.
“Any function or event, we try to show up and provide support and maintain a presence,” Patterson said, adding that deputies have kids in the schools, they coach little league teams, go to scouting functions and sporting events. “We are part of the community. Being a part of the community, I think people miss that sometimes.”