Gary and Hammond were safer cities last year than in 2005, according to a new report analyzing federal crime statistics.

The 14th annual report, released by research group CQ Press, analyzed 2006 FBI data for murder, rape, robbery, aggravated assault, burglary and motor vehicle theft.

Gary is listed as the country's 17th most dangerous city, outpacing major cities including Philadelphia and Newark, N.J. But the Steel City's rank is a drop from No. 10 in 2005. Hammond tumbled from the 87th to the 120th spot on the most dangerous city list, according to the rankings.

But an increase in homicides in those cities this year counters the apparent progress detailed in the CQ report.

So far in 2007, Gary has tallied 64 homicides, eclipsing its 51 total from last year. An additional two Gary homicides this year were tallied in Cook County because the victims died there, the Lake County coroner's office reported.

Gary Mayor Rudy Clay on Monday continued to defend his city as not violent.

"Gary has more God-fearing people than any city this size in America," Clay said. "We have a few bad apples. And the figures ... are showing that we're weeding the bad apples out."

Of the hike in homicides this year, Clay said: "That's just paperwork. But the reality is that the perception of Gary is not reality."

Hammond's homicide rate is at the highest it's been in three years with 12 slayings so far this year. Last year, the city experienced a 27 percent drop from the previous year to eight homicides, helping its fall in the CQ rankings.

Hammond Mayor Thomas McDermott Jr. supported his city's Police Department on Monday, saying officers work hard to fight crime.

When it releases its crime statistics, the FBI cautions against overstating its rankings and urges residents to consider other factors, including a city's economics.

The FBI rankings, according to the agency's Web site, "provide no insight into the many variables that mold the crime in a particular town, city, county, state, region or other jurisdiction."

CQ Press calls its method complicated but fair.

For its lists, CQ Press plugged data on the six crime categories recorded by the FBI into a formula that measures how a city compared to the national average. Based on a weighted calculation, the group assigns a score to each city, with a zero as the national average.

Gary received a score of 214.03. Hammond received a 62.37.

Data for Illinois did not meet FBI reporting guidelines and was not included in the CQ Press report.