New survey tracks changes in violent crime in major California cities – Lake County Record-Bee

Violent crime has declined in some major California cities this year, according to a new national survey, but the change is also reflected in higher numbers in other places.

The Major Cities Chiefs Association's Mid-Year Report on Violent Crime compares preliminary data collected on reported violent crimes – murder, rape, robbery and aggravated assault – in America's largest cities during the first six months of 2023 and 2024. Among the 69 U.S. cities that participated in the survey, violent crime declined in the first half of 2024 compared to the same period in 2023.

The statewide survey found declines in all four categories in several major California cities: Oakland, Sacramento and San Francisco. In other cities, such as San Jose, violent crime rose year-over-year in some categories but fell in others.

In Oakland, the number of reported homicides fell from 52 in 2023 to 47 this year, the lowest since the COVID pandemic and resulting quarantines in 2020. This represents a decrease of nearly 10 percent.

Oakland's murder rate per 100,000 residents is still far higher than the national rate – 10.77 in the city compared to 0.93 nationwide. San Jose and San Francisco were also slightly above the national rate, with murder rates of 1.55 and 2.10, respectively.

In San Jose, where reported data did not include June numbers, murder and aggravated assault cases increased between last year and this year. The number of murders rose slightly from 13 last year to 15 this year, according to the survey. Aggravated assault cases also increased slightly, from 1,551 in 2023 to 1,596 in 2024, an increase of just over two percent.

San Francisco also saw a decline in violent crime, with 17 murders reported, bringing the number of homicides in the city of over 800,000 residents down by more than 30 percent in the first half of 2023. The city also reported about 200 fewer robberies between this year and last year.

The number of robberies in Oakland fell from about 1,500 in 2023 to about 1,350 in 2024, according to the survey, while the number of aggravated assaults fell from about 1,600 to 1,500. The most significant change was the robbery rate, which fell by nearly 15 percent.

In March, Oakland Mayor Sheng Thao touted city leaders' efforts to combat crime, particularly in the area around Hegenberger Road, the main road to the city's airport, where many well-known businesses have closed due to disrepair and crime. Burglaries and shootings were down from the previous year, Oakland police said at the time, but robberies were up by nearly a third.

The number of rapes reported in San José fell by almost 55 percent, from 344 to 155.

San Jose isn't the only city seeing a slight increase in some categories of violent crime. Fresno reported more cases of rape and aggravated assault in 2024 than in 2023.

The San Jose and Oakland police departments did not respond to requests for comment Monday and Tuesday.

Nationwide, the number of murders fell by 17.42 percent, rapes by 9.73 percent, robberies by 6.09 percent and aggravated assaults by 5.39 percent.

The number of violent crimes has also declined in Sacramento. In particular, the number of reports of aggravated assault in Sacramento has fallen from 1,400 in 2023 to 1,200 this year over the same period.

In Long Beach, violent crime increased primarily as more cases of murder, rape and robbery were reported in the city. Reported robberies increased in both the city and Los Angeles County.