Local News in Brief : Crime Is Down, but Block Not Satisfied

Crime in Los Angeles County “leveled off at an unacceptable level” in 1988, Los Angeles Sheriff Sherman Block said Tuesday.

While overall major crime was down about 4% for the year in the area under the sheriff’s jurisdiction, Block noted that aggravated assault increased 10%, auto theft by 11% and robbery by 7%. There was virtually no change in the number of murders committed in the area, he added.

The homicide total for 1988 was 284, compared to 286 in 1987.

“The big picture is that crime, particularly violent crime, has pretty much remained at a high level,” Block said. “The community seems to have developed far too high a tolerance to violence. We seem to accept it as a condition of life in the big city or whatever.”