LANCASTER CRIME CRACKDOWN SHOWS RESULTS.Byline: GIDEON RUBIN Staff Writer LANCASTER -- City officials made an engaged citizenry cit·i·zen·ry n. pl. cit·i·zen·ries Citizens considered as a group. citizenry Noun citizens collectively Noun 1. the centerpiece of an aggressive crime-reduction program begun last year that aims to reduce serious crime by 30 percent over five years. The early returns suggests the program seems to be working. 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 compiled 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. , serious crimes in Lancaster dropped nearly 4 percent in the first quarter of this year compared to the same period last year. The numbers are especially promising considering Lancaster has experienced annual increases in these felonies for seven straight years. "People are starting to get involved, and I think it's starting to make a difference," Lancaster station commander Capt. Carl Deeley said Friday. These "Part 1" crimes are defined by the FBI for the purposes of statistical analysis as all violent crimes (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. , rape, robbery and assault) and property crimes (burglary burglary, at common law, the breaking and entering of a dwelling house of another at night with the intent to commit a felony, whether the intent is carried out or not. , 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. .) According to the Sheriff's Department report, the violent crime rate dropped 8.1 percent and the property crime rate fell 2.7 percent for the first quarter of this year compared to the same period last year. The most notable crime rate numbers included a 5.7 percent decline in robberies and a 21.4 percent drop in burglaries. Because the crime rate factors population, the first-quarter Part 1 crime numbers fell 3.8 percent compared to the same period of 2006, even though the number of such crimes (1,630) were identical in both quarters. Lancaster's population grew by 5,426 (from 138,392 to 143,818) in the first quarter from the same period last year -- a 4 percent increase. The city's much-publicized crime-fighting efforts have included the hiring of new deputies -- 15 deputies were added to Lancaster last month, and about a dozen more are expected to be hired this summer -- and additional support staff. More importantly, the numbers suggest efforts to engage the public have been wildly successful. Lancaster has more than 70 active Neighborhood Watch groups, compared to just 10 when it hired a full-time crime prevention officer six months ago, Assistant City Manager Mark Bozigian said. gideon.rubin(at)dailynews.com (661) 267-7802 |
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