Joe Martinez, Ed.D., is a Doctor of Curriculum & Technology, a U.S. Military Veteran, and a San Benito native.
San Benito is a beautiful city in its own right, featuring a lovely central park and stunning resacas that showcase our town. However, there is a darker side, which includes petty crime, larceny, and theft.
Our city experiences a high rate of petty theft, larceny, property crimes, and motor vehicle theft, according to statistics from Crime Explorer (2025) and Citi-Data (2026).
San Benito’s crime statistics for 2024 report 68 burglaries, 68 thefts, 573 vehicle thefts, and 707 property crimes. Our crime grade is a “D” from Area-Vibes and the FBI’s Uniform Crime Reporting Program.
Sociologists claim that a community reflects its environment, but that isn’t true, especially since our city is plagued with poverty.
One-third of the population lives well below the poverty line. We must do more for our citizens, which is why I stress the importance of keeping our wealth here in San Benito.
We all need everyone’s help for our city’s success.
Our police do a great job keeping our city safe, but creating a truly safe environment requires more. Economic growth is essential so that people can find jobs locally if they want to.
Stop sending your wealth to other cities like Harlingen or Brownsville; support our local businesses, which, in turn, create more jobs for everyone, especially our youth, who can earn money during their free time from school, keeping them away from the influences of crime.
Petty thefts mirror our surroundings, where desperation pushes people to extremes by stealing to obtain what they cannot afford.
Research shows that economic instability promotes crime in a city; this, in turn, causes businesses to lose money, hampers economic growth, and may even stop it.
When a local economy stalls, studies reveal it creates a never-ending vicious cycle that is also passed down to future generations until prosperity is achieved through successful business growth and higher employment opportunities.
I’ve observed notable progress in our city over the past few months, with more businesses opening downtown on Robertson Street.
Continue shopping in San Benito to create more local jobs and generate essential tax revenue for programs that help reduce crime by providing employment to our community and youth.
With your support, we can make San Benito one of the top small cities to live in and the envy of the Rio Grande Valley, perhaps even all of Texas.