CALIFORNIA IN BRIEF : SACRAMENTO : State’s Per Capita Crime Rate Drops

California’s per capita crime rate fell by 11.1% between 1979 and 1988, although it still was fourth-highest in the nation, state researchers reported. The national crime rate increased by 1.6% during the same 10-year period, paced by the District of Columbia with 5,298 crimes for every 100,000 people. Florida was next with 4,177, followed by Texas, 3,610, California, 3,321, and New York, 3,176. California’s rate for willful homicide, forcible rape, aggravated assault, robbery, burglary and vehicle theft dropped from 3,736 to 3,321, compared with a rate of 2,427 for the rest of the nation, the state’s Bureau of Criminal Statistics reported. Atty. Gen. John K. Van de Kamp attributed the decreases “in large part to tougher laws and increased law enforcement and prosecution efforts.”