AREA SEES SERIOUS CRIME DROP.Byline: Holly Edwards Staff Writer SANTA CLARITA Santa Clarita, city (1990 pop. 110,642), Los Angeles co., S Calif., suburb 30 mi (48 km) NW of downtown Los Angeles, on the Santa Clara River; inc. 1987. Situated in the Santa Clara valley and nearby canyons, Santa Clarita includes the former towns of Canyon Country, - Serious crime decreased during the first half of the year in the city, but the trend may be largely due to changes in the way some crimes are reported, officials said Monday. Serious crimes decreased 3.8 percent in the city from January to June, according to according to prep. 1. As stated or indicated by; on the authority of: according to historians. 2. In keeping with: according to instructions. 3. statistics released by the Federal Bureau of Investigation Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI), division of the U.S. Dept. of Justice charged with investigating all violations of federal laws except those assigned to some other federal agency. . However, a change in the way some domestic violence cases are reported in the city led to a large decrease in the number of aggravated assaults A person is guilty of aggravated assault if he or she attempts to cause serious bodily injury to another or causes such injury purposely, knowingly, or recklessly under circumstances manifesting extreme indifference to the value of human life; or attempts to cause or purposely or , which contributed to the overall downward trend, Sheriff's Department officials said. ``We can't deny that the change in reporting aggravated assaults would have an impact on the total crime numbers,'' said Sgt. Ron Fernstrom of the Sheriff's Department headquarters bureau. The number of serious crimes in cities with similar populations increased 1.3 percent for the first six months of 2000 compared to the same period last year, officials said. The number of serious crimes reported in Santa Clarita, often ranked among the safest cities in the nation for its size, dropped from 1,364 during the first half of 1999 to 1,311 for the first half this year, according to the report. But officials concede con·cede v. con·ced·ed, con·ced·ing, con·cedes v.tr. 1. To acknowledge, often reluctantly, as being true, just, or proper; admit. See Synonyms at acknowledge. 2. that much of that decrease is due to the drop in aggravated assaults, which fell from 218 to 128 for the same period because of the change in reporting standards. In the past, all domestic violence-related assaults were classified as aggravated assaults, an error corrected about six months ago by the Sheriff's Department, said Lt. Tim Peters Tim Peters may refer to:
Now, he said, only domestic violence-related assaults that involve weapons or result in serious injuries are considered aggravated assaults. As in other parts of the county, the number of motor vehicle thefts Motor vehicle theft or grand theft auto is a criminal act of theft generally understood to refer to the stealing of automobiles, buses, motorcycles, snowmobiles, trucks, trailers or any other motorized vehicle legally allowed on public roads and highways, including attempted is on the rise this year in Santa Clarita, a trend largely due to the types of cars found in the city, Peters said. ``We have a lot of vehicles targeted by car thieves,'' he said, adding that Hondas, Toyotas and small pickups are the most commonly stolen vehicles. Sgt. Mitch Clark, who supervises motor vehicle theft investigations at the station, said the increase may also be due to the overall increase in the number of vehicles in the Santa Clarita Valley The Santa Clarita Valley is the valley of the Santa Clara River in Southern California. It stretches through Los Angeles County and Ventura County. Its main population center is the city of Santa Clarita. The valley was part of the 48,612-acre (19,672. . ``Some are just used to joy ride, some are stripped for parts and some leave the country,'' Clark said. Other crimes on the rise this year include larceny larceny, in law, the unlawful taking and carrying away of the property of another, with intent to deprive the owner of its use or to appropriate it to the use of the perpetrator or of someone else. , which rose from 704 to 739; arson arson, at common law, the malicious and willful burning of the house of another. Originally, it was an offense against the security of habitation rather than against property rights. , which increased from 19 to 21; and rape, which increased from 12 to 15. ``Fortunately, the kind of rape we have here usually involves acquaintances, not somebody who jumps out of the bushes,'' said Peters. ``But we still consider it an extremely violent crime and we're trying to put a stop to it.'' There were no murders in the city this year, compared to one murder reported for the first half of last year. Other crimes in decline include robbery, which fell from 42 to 36 reports, and burglary, which fell from 270 to 262. Capt. Don Rodriguez, commander of the Santa Clarita station, said the wide array of city-sponsored programs for young people has helped keep the overall crime rate low. Because most crimes are committed by those under 28, he said, the city has tried to focus on crime prevention programs aimed at teens. ``We have after-school programs, parenting classes, day-care programs, sporting events and all kinds of things to get kids involved in activities,'' Rodriguez said. ``I think the decrease in crime speaks highly of the programs the city's put in place.'' |
|
||||||||||||||
Printer friendly
Cite/link
Email
Feedback
Reader Opinion