FBI REPORTS DIP IN SERIOUS CRIME IN VALLEY AREAS.Byline: Bhavna Mistry Daily News Staff WriterLancaster and Palmdale both experienced a drop in crime in the first six months of 1998 - a change from a year ago, when they were the only municipalities above a population of 100,000 in Los Angeles Los Angeles (lôs ăn`jələs, lŏs, ăn`jəlēz'), city (1990 pop. 3,485,398), seat of Los Angeles co., S Calif.; inc. 1850. County to see crime go up. Rate of incidence in the FBI's serious crime category, which includes homicide, rape, robbery, assault, burglary, 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. , grand theft auto and 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. , dropped 9 percent in Lancaster and 5 percent in Palmdale during the first six months of 1998, 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. bureau statistics. ``It's remarkable,'' said Lancaster Mayor Frank Roberts Frank Roberts may refer to:
Statistics released by the FBI Sunday varied slightly from first-half numbers released during a press conference by the Los Angeles County Sheriff's Department This article is about the Los Angeles County Sherriff's Department, not to be confused with the smaller Los Angeles County Police The Los Angeles County Sheriff's Department (LASD) is a local law enforcement agency that serves Los Angeles County, California. earlier this year. All categories in Lancaster showed a decrease except homicides - up from two to five - and grand theft auto, which rose less than 1 percent. Leading the crime drop in Lancaster was the robbery category, which was down 26.9 percent. Also down was arson, by 39.3 percent; burglary, 18.1 percent; rape, 17.2 percent; and aggravated assault 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 , 10.8 percent. In Palmdale, homicide, rape, assaults and burglaries were up, while robberies were down by almost 50 percent. As in Lancaster, homicides went from two to five. Also on the decline was larceny, by 5.5 percent, and auto theft, 16.7 percent. ``This is good news,'' said Palmdale Mayor Jim Ledford, who said crime statistics are one measure of the Sheriff's Department's effectiveness locally. ``We want to support residents and community-based policing. It has a positive effect on the number of crimes.'' With both cities' populations increasing, more crime can be expected, Ledford said. ``In the area that's growing, you're going to have more crime,'' said Ledford. ``The numbers go with high-growth areas.'' In 1997, FBI figures showed that Lancaster and Palmdale were alone among the 15 cities with populations over 100,000 in Los Angeles County to see an increase in serious crimes during the year's first half. Statistics showed Palmdale with a 13 percent increase and Lancaster with an 8 percent increase. At that time, officials said they were concerned about the numbers and had programs in place to tackle certain crime problems. But they attributed much of the rise to an increase in population, an increased number of parolees living in the Antelope Valley This article is about the Los Angeles County region. For the census-designated place in Wyoming, see Antelope Valley-Crestview, Wyoming. The Antelope Valley and better reporting by area residents. Officials on Monday said long-term projects, grants for specialized and community-oriented policing A philosophy that combines traditional aspects of law enforcement with prevention measures, problem-solving, community engagement, and community partnerships. From the 1930s to the 1960s, U.S. law enforcement relied on a professional policing model. programs are all assisting the decline of crime. ``It all contributes,'' said Roberts. ``I'd like to think that the dedication to our new policing programs are working.'' Officials attribute the large drop in robberies to a successful Men in Black stolen-property sting operation Noun 1. sting operation - a complicated confidence game planned and executed with great care (especially an operation implemented by undercover agents to apprehend criminals) and the breakup breakup The division of a company into separate parts. The most famous breakup to date was the 1984 division of AT&T (formerly, American Telephone & Telegraph Company). This breakup was intended to increase competition in the communications industry. of a robbery ring believed to be responsible for 50 robberies in 1997. The Men in Black sting netted more than 72 alleged thieves and drug dealers. In a four-month operation that ended April 1, four undercover deputies running a pawnshop within sight of the Lancaster sheriff's station recovered $1 million worth of stolen merchandise - including 43 guns and 79 automobiles - while recording transactions on videotape videotape Magnetic tape used to record visual images and sound, or the recording itself. There are two types of videotape recorders, the transverse (or quad) and the helical. and identifying 90 suspects. ``We're not stopping,'' said Roberts. ``We're going to continue with all of our programs. Anytime (the deputies) have an idea, we're ready to listen.'' A $1 million grant announced last summer will pay for specialized computer equipment and four additional employees to study the activities of career criminals and how best to target them. Officials said prison parolees are responsible for much area crime, and their number has risen to 1,690 from 850 eight years ago. CRIME STATISTICS The following figures are a comparison of first-half crime statistics between 1997 and 1998 in the Antelope Valley. LANCASTER Crime 1997 1998 Change Homicide 2 5 +150.0% Rape 29 24 -17.2% Robbery 175 128 -26.9% Assault 544 485 -10.8% Burglary 791 648 -18.1% Larceny 1,278 1,234 -3.4% Auto theft 397 400 +0.8% Arson 28 17 -39.3% TOTAL 3,244 2,941 -9.3% PALMDALE Crime 1997 1998 Change Homicide 2 5 +150% Rape 17 18 +5.9% Robbery 143 78 -45.5% Assault 422 444 +5.2% Burglary 540 588 +8.9% Larceny 1,192 1,127 -5.5% Auto theft 419 339 -16.7% Arson 23 23 0% TOTAL 2,758 2,622 -4.9% SOURCE: 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. CAPTION(S): Box BOX: CRIME STATISTICS (See text) |
|
||||||||||||||
Printer friendly
Cite/link
Email
Feedback
Reader Opinion