County’s Crime Rate Low, and Dropping : Statistics: Numbers for the nation, state and neighboring counties increased from 1988 to 1989. A variety of reasons are cited for Ventura’s decline, including a tough law-and-order policy.

Ventura County’s crime rate is the lowest in the West for counties with at least one city of 50,000 or more residents, according to FBI statistics released Sunday.

And while crime rates for both the nation and state of California increased from 1988 to 1989, FBI figures show that the crime rate in Ventura County decreased.

Ventura County had 3,813.9 crimes per 100,000 people in 1989, the second consecutive year that the county has had the lowest crime rate in the western United States for counties with at least one city of 50,000 or more people. That compared to a rate of 3,875.6 in 1988.

In contrast, the 1989 crime rate for the entire United States was 5,741 crimes per 100,000 residents, an increase from a rate of 5,664.2 the previous year. California had a rate of 6,763.4 in 1989 and 6,635.5 in 1988.

Neighboring counties in California also showed higher rates than Ventura County during the last year.

Los Angeles County had a rate of 7,424.2 crimes per 100,000 people. San Diego County had a rate of 7,362.3 and Orange County’s rate was 5,939.4. Santa Barbara had a rate of 5,098.5.

In Ventura County, murders were down from 28 in 1988 to 20 in 1989. Rapes, assaults and larceny also declined slightly. Robberies, burglaries and motor vehicle thefts increased.

But county officials said they did not attribute any significance to the decline in murders.

“Homicides are inexplicable,” said Dist. Atty. Michael D. Bradbury. “Most murders cannot be deterred because they are crimes of passion.”

The annual FBI report includes statistics on the violent offenses of murder, rape, robbery and assault. Property crimes of burglary, larceny and motor vehicle theft also are counted.

According to the report, Ventura County is the safest county west of Bismarck, N.D., among counties with at least one city or urban area of 50,000 or more people. There are more than 30 other counties in that category with lower crime rates than Ventura County’s, all east of Bismarck. The report did not look at sparsely populated rural counties, many of which traditionally have very low crime rates.

The FBI noted that many factors affect crime rates and that comparisons of one city to another are sometimes rendered meaningless because of differences in the ways that police departments report crime. Some departments simply do a better job than others of identifying crimes.

Police officials attributed Ventura County’s low crime rates to a variety of factors, including the absence of large pockets of poverty that sometimes breed crime.

“Any time there’s a city of lower socioeconomic levels, it will have additional crime,” Bradbury said. “I imagine the reverse of that is that we’re a fairly affluent community.”

In addition, officials noted the county’s reputation as being aggressive in prosecuting and sentencing criminals.

“Ventura County’s reputation is for being on the hanging side of the criminal justice system,” said Undersheriff Larry Carpenter of the Ventura County Sheriff’s Department.

County officials cited the district attorney’s policy against plea bargaining and stiff sentencing by judges as other factors in the county’s low crime rate.

They also said they believe that Ventura County residents are more willing than citizens in many other areas of the state to take action against crime--joining neighborhood watch programs, contributing money to anti-drug programs such as DARE and SANE and responding to mailed subpoenas with a 90% return rate.

The planning of cities such as Thousand Oaks also deters crime, officials said.

Lt. George Conahey of the East Valley Sheriff’s Station, which oversees Thousand Oaks, said that a police liaison attends the city’s Planning Commission meeting to offer advice on how buildings can be constructed to prevent crime.

Houses must be built so doors are clearly visible from the street, a factor that discourages burglars, he said. The city also avoids having alleys behind houses and insists on good lighting for parking lots, garages and commercial areas.

Simi Valley has a similar program by which the department reviews all building plans, said Lt. Bob Klamser of the Simi Valley Police Department.

Such planning on the eastern end of the county may provide a buffer between the counties of Los Angeles and Ventura, which already is somewhat geographically isolated, they said.

Chief Robert Owens of the Oxnard Police Department said he believes that predators are more apt to stay within their own communities in Ventura County because of geographical boundaries that divide the county.

“It’s easier to create a sense of community here than in Los Angeles, where it’s a sprawling, never-ending change of cities,” Owens said.

But with so many factors, Carpenter said some of the credit for the low crime rate still just boils down to luck.

“Maybe we create an environment where people want safety and low crime rates,” he said. “But there are times when it’s just luck involved and we accept wherever it comes from.”

Of the Ventura County cities detailed in the report, Oxnard had the highest crime rate, with 5,949.5 crimes per 100,000 people.

Even so, murders in Oxnard fell from 11 in 1988 to 6 in 1989. The rate of rape, burglary and larceny also fell, continuing what Owens said is a 10-year decline in crime in the city. He said demographics account for the city’s high crime rate.

“It’s a more blue-collar city,” Owens said. “People in lower socioeconomic groups tend to deal with disagreements in a more direct and oftentimes violent manner.”

Santa Paula followed closely with a rate of 5,864.1, while Ventura had a rate of 5,414.6. Fillmore had a rate of 3,442.3, Port Hueneme reported a rate of 3,177.6 and Simi Valley had a rate of 3,127.7.

Among the cities with the lowest crime rates in the county were Thousand Oaks, with a rate of 2,832.6 crimes per 100,000 people; Moorpark, with a rate of 2,351 per 100,000 population; and Camarillo, with the lowest crime rate in the county at 2,221.4 crimes per 100,000 people.

Statistics were not compiled for the city of Ojai.

Simi Valley’s crime rate for 1989 was lower than the 1988 rate of 3,386 crimes per 100,000 people, a contrast to a slight increase in crime reported by several of the county’s other larger cities.

Lt. Klamser of the Simi Valley Police Department attributed the decline in large part to a community that fervently guards against crime. He also said that he thinks other communities are affected by some spillover of crime from Los Angeles, while Simi Valley is secluded.

“We have limited egress and ingress,” Klamser said. “It’s not easy for criminals to come in.”

VENTURA COUNTY CRIME STATISTICS

1988

Rate per Crime Total crimes 100,000 people All crimes 24,795 3,875.6 Murder 28 4.4 Forcible rape 200 31.3 Robbery 688 107.5 Aggravated assault 1,755 274.3 Burglary 5,987 935.8 Larceny 14,080 2,200.8 Auto theft 2,057 321.5

1989

Rate per Crime Total crimes 100,000 people All crimes 25,341 3,813.9 Murder 20 3.0 Forcible Rape 178 16.8 Robbery 712 107.2 Aggravated assault 1,740 261.9 Burglary 6,385 961.0 Larceny 14,039 2,112.9 Auto theft 2,267 341.2

Figures from the U.S. Department of Justice