Clovis: Don't always believe what you read

[denayoung]

Does anyone know more about the crime in Clovis? I am looking for a safe city to relocate to New Mexico from Salem, Oregon.

[clairz]

Originally Posted by denayoung

Does anyone know more about the crime in Clovis? I am looking for a safe city to relocate to New Mexico from Salem, Oregon.

Here is the perspective on crime in Clovis from a resident and relative newcomer. What I know about crime here is strictly from reading the newspaper, which you can read online at Clovis News Journal : Homepage. I haven't had any trouble or felt unsafe anywhere in town, but then again, I'm a retired lady who is almost always home after dark. It seems to me that most of what I read about happening is either late-at-night stuff or domestic disturbances, and both seem to be down in the older part of town, centered around the rowdier night spots.

There also seems to be something requiring police intervention going on pretty often at the junior high and at the new freshman high (9th grade only)--drug and weapon issues. They may just stand out to me because I'm interested in schools at this level and because it seems like police activity is comprehensively reported. I've worked in a junior high in another state (with less media coverage) and am not surprised that there is trouble. On the other hand, I volunteer at an elementary school here and have seen nothing but very polite and well-behaved kids. If you have kids, there are lots of church-sponsored schools that provide an educational alternative. I'm pretty sure they wouldn't put up with bad behavior, because they are in the position of being able to kick out troublesome students, whereas the public schools have to keep everyone, including poorly behaved, disrespectful students whose parents don't back up the school's authority. Oops, I sense a rant coming on, so I'll leave this subject.

Here are some very positive indicators about the kids in Clovis. The many churches here work hard at providing social opportunities for youth in the evenings so that they are given positive choices for activities. I also see frequent photos in the newspaper about high schoolers who go to the elementary schools as role models to talk about sports and education. There are certainly a number of high schoolers volunteering in the elementary school literacy program where I volunteer and the little kids really look up to them. Those are all good, proactive ways to reduce the potential for crime in a community.

I've read elsewhere on City-Data that if you find a place to live in Clovis above 14th St. you will be just fine. I've certainly found that to be true. The neighborhoods in this section of town (I'm somewhere above 21st St.) are well kept and seem to be trouble free with no evidence of any property crime or tagging-type activities.

You will see a lot of signs around that Clovis is a "Character Counts" town and there is such a strong church presence here that I can't help but think that makes a difference. You just immediately notice that people go out of their way to be kind, helpful, and welcoming.

If I help further, just ask away.

~clairz

[mil1]

Before relocating to Clovis NM you should check out -::- Welcome to CriminalCheck.com -::-. The zip code for Clovis is 88101.
I have lived in Clovis for over a year now and I can honestly say that the horror stories are true. The only people that will say different are the local realtors and that’s because they are trying to push their extremely overpriced homes.
Using the population number provided by clairz of 32,000 and divided by the number of registered sex offenders in Clovis you get 1 in 450.
1 out of 450 is a registered sex offender.
Don’t believe what you read or don’t read. I’ve seen posed in this blog a recommendation for newcomers to check out the police blotter in the online Clovis paper. Although, there is such a posted publication it comes with a disclaimer. The posted blotter is only a sampling of reports and not a full disclosure of all happenings.
Most military members with family are moving just across the border in TX.

[clairz]

Originally Posted by mil1

I have lived in Clovis for over a year now and I can honestly say that the horror stories are true. The only people that will say different are the local realtors and that’s because they are trying to push their extremely overpriced homes.

Just to clarify, I'm not a realtor, just a regular person living in Clovis who is somehow missing out on all the horror. I mustn't be very picky, though, because I've pretty much liked most of the other places I've lived (Maine, NH, WA, British Columbia, and Las Cruces, NM) except for CA and CT. But I certainly understand that we all have different expectations and experiences, which is kind of why I started this thread.

Truth be told, I really like the excitement of moving to a new place and learning all about it.

~clairz

[6 FOOT 3]

Originally Posted by clairz

Just to clarify, I'm not a realtor, just a regular person living in Clovis who is somehow missing out on all the horror. I mustn't be very picky, though, because I've pretty much liked most of the other places I've lived (Maine, NH, WA, British Columbia, and Las Cruces, NM) except for CA and CT. But I certainly understand that we all have different expectations and experiences, which is kind of why I started this thread.

Truth be told, I really like the excitement of moving to a new place and learning all about it.

~clairz

I agree with you ClairZ about your perspective. This person knows there's sex offenders in every city in America and yet just mentiones Clovis as this person is a Clovis hater. Keep up the positive posts about Clovis ClairZ on this site and your personal Blog site about Clovis as i always enjoy reading them.

Here's albuquerque's where i live so this poster doesn't feel left out.
Sex Offender Information

[mil1]

Ok, lets look at some facts
The 2003 population of Albuquerque was 471,856
Now lets look at the link 6 FOOT 3 provided. First you will notice that there are 23 zip codes assigned to Albuquerque. Each zip code link identifies registered sex offenders. Many may not have the time to look at each link and do the math so I have done it for you.

There are 23 zip codes.
The zip code with the highest number of registered sex offenders is 87105 with 11.
In contrast to Clovis NM 88101 zip code has 71 register sex offenders.
According to the site 6 FOOT 3 provided there are 80 registered sex offenders in Albuquerque. Wow, that is a bigger number than Clovis’s 71. But if you do the math 1 out of 5898 is a registered sex offender in Albuquerque. Compare that to Clovis, 1 out of 450.

[droys]

Mil1

If you dislke this town so much why do you stay in it. Clovis may not be for everybody but it is not anything like you describe it. Has every person in this town done something terrible to you? Or are you just unhappy.

[New West 2020]

Clovis residents who do not work for the Chamber of Commerce say it is getting bad on the south side of town. It appears the city does not want to invest in the "poor" areas and so is letting them run down, become criminal-infested, and remain butt ugly.

What does this do for Clovis? If you live "north of 21st Street" you are out of the DMZ but still likely to be burglarized. If you want one of those $500 homes, they are all on the south side of town and do not, under any circumstances, move there if you want to avoid crime. Go to Texico or Portales.

Its really a shame that a few crooked rednecks have decided to ignore their future by X-ing the "hood". Not safe for military or anyone else! It'll bite them back eventually, rest assured.