CRIME'S DOWN, BUT . . . FIGURES MASK RISE IN HOMICIDES, RAPES.Byline: Jesse Jesse (jĕs`ē), in the Bible, the descendant of Rahab, the grandson of Boaz and Ruth, and the father of David. Referring to the restoration of the Davidic monarchy, the Book of Isaiah speaks of a shoot coming from the "stump of Jesse. Hiestand Daily News Staff Writer Crime fell sharply in the San Fernando Valley San Fernando Valley Valley, southern California, U.S. Northwest of central Los Angeles, the valley is bounded by the San Gabriel, Santa Susana, and Santa Monica mountains and the Simi Hills. in the first three months of 1998, except in two critical areas - murder and rape. A similar trend was reflected throughout the city of Los Angeles
In the Valley, homicides were up by 50 percent - most dramatically in the North Hollywood Hollywood. 1 Community within the city of Los Angeles, S Calif., on the slopes of the Santa Monica Mts.; inc. 1903, consolidated with Los Angeles 1910. and Foothill divisions - and the number of rapes increased 22 percent over the same period last year. Overall, crime in the Valley fell 6.6 percent. LAPD 1. LAPD - Link Access Procedure on the D channel. 2. LAPD - Los Angeles Police Department. officials blamed gangs largely for the rise in Valley homicides but said they believe they have capped the problem by sending more anti-gang officers onto the streets in Northeast and East Valley neighborhoods. Also, three of the homicides involved store owners defending themselves and were deemed justified by prosecutors. The soaring soaring: see flight; glider. soaring or gliding Sport of flying a glider or sailplane. The craft is towed behind a powered airplane to an altitude of about 2,000 ft (600 m) and then released. numbers of rapes offered no easy explanation, but police officials say they are receiving more reports of ``acquaintance'' rapes, those involving friends, dates or former spouses. The rise is not isolated to the Valley, with a 17 percent increase citywide. Recognizing the problem, Police Commission President Edith Perez recently asked Chief Bernard C. Parks Bernard Parks (born December 7, 1943 in Beaumont, Texas) is a member of the Los Angeles City Council, representing the 8th District in South Los Angeles and former Chief of the Los Angeles Police Department. Parks attended Los Angeles City College, received his B.S. for information on the rise. ``We're we're Contraction of we are. we're we are certainly aware of it,'' Parks said, adding that his officers are trying to find a trend through use of the new FASTRAC crime analysis program. Van Nuys Division Capt. Val Paniccia said he believes the roots of some of the rise in rapes can be found in society itself. ``It seems we have a more sexually violent society where it seems to be more acceptable that you can force yourself on someone,'' said Paniccia. North Hollywood experienced the sharpest jump in rapes, from eight in the first quarter of last year compared to 23 for the same period in 1998. North Hollywood also had nine homicides since Jan. 1 - the most of any LAPD division in the Valley, but fourth citywide behind the Newton Division with 12. At the same time, however, the North Hollywood Division also saw reports of robbery robbery, in law, felonious taking of property from a person against his will by threatening or committing force or violence. The injury or threat may be directed against the person robbed, his property, or the person or property of his relative or of anyone in his drop 25 percent, to 174 since Jan. 1. And assaults dropped from 446 incidents in the first quarter of 1997 to 347 in the same period this year. Of the eight homicides in the Foothill Division so far this year, six have been gang-related, said Detective Frank Bishop of the Foothill Division. This rash of killings prompted a quick response from police officials, who increased patrols and called in the department's elite Metro unit last month. ``There was a lot of retaliation RETALIATION. The act by which a nation or individual treats another in the same manner that the latter has treated them. For example, if a nation should lay a very heavy tariff on American goods, the United States would be justified in return in laying heavy duties on the manufactures and going on between gangs,'' Foothill Division Capt. Ronald Bergmann said. Bergmann said there hasn't been a homicide homicide (hŏm`əsīd), in law, the taking of human life. Homicides that are neither justifiable nor excusable are considered crimes. A criminal homicide committed with malice is known as murder, otherwise it is called manslaughter. in Foothill for a month, something he owes in part to an expansion of the Community Resources Against Street Hoodlums Community Resources Against Street Hoodlums, usually known as CRASH, was a special unit of the Los Angeles Police Department established in the early 1970s to combat the rising problem of gangs in Los Angeles, California. anti-gang unit in the area. The Foothill Division also saw rapes jump from 21 in the first quarter of last year to 30 for the same period this year. Bergmann said the number of rapes was unusually low last year, and some of the reported attacks include parents filing charges involving underage boyfriends and girlfriends. Other reported rapes involved people in relationships making apparently false accusations against their partners after arguments, Bergmann said. Yet, like other divisions plagued with these twin problems, Foothill also saw overall violent crime drop. The decline was by 10 percent. Foothill was the only area to report an increase in property crimes, a 3 percent rise driven primarily by an increase in burglaries and thefts from automobiles. Auto theft was down notably in the Van Nuys and West Valley divisions. West Valley was the only division to report an increase in violent crime, but only by 1.4 percent. West Valley Division Capt. Paul Marks said domestic violence is largely responsible for the increase. But he added, ``It concerns us that we don't have a rational explanation for the sudden surge in domestic violence crime.'' Marks said. Daily News Staff Writer Patrick McGreevy contributed to this story. VALLEY CRIME During the first three months of 1998 as compared to the same period last year, crime declined overall but rose substantially in some areas. 1997 1998 Overall crime 15,904 14,846 - 6.6% Property crime (x) 12,645 11,877 - 6% Violent crime (xx) 3,259 2,969 - 8.8% Homicide 18 27 + 50% Rape 93 114 + 22% Robbery 1,135 855 - 24% (x) Property crimes are car thefts and burglaries. (xx) Violent crimes are homicides, rapes, robberies and 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 . SOURCE: LAPD Valley Bureau CAPTION(S): Chart Chart: VALLEY CRIME (see text) Daily News |
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