Sheriff Links Crime Rise, Deputy Shortage

Sheriff Jim Roache on Thursday announced a 17% jump in violent crime last year and then called for public support of his “malnourished” department.

“Everything is not fine. We have some problems here,” Roache said at a press conference in downtown San Diego. “I’m not saying they’re out of control, but they are increasing.”

Although total crime in the sheriff’s jurisdiction decreased 0.6% from 1990, this was overshadowed by a dramatic 29% increase in both rapes and robberies in 1991, fueling Roache’s warning that his department needs more manpower or the public can expect to face more serious crime problems in the future.

Violent crime encompasses homicide, rape, robbery and aggravated assault. Total crime includes violent crimes plus burglary, larceny theft and motor vehicle theft.

“If nothing changes, I fear we’re heading for the same degree of problems and the same nature of problems that they’re experiencing in parts of Los Angeles County,” Roache said. “We have time to do something about it. We can intervene and stop this trend.”

While homicides and aggravated assaults each jumped by about 13% in 1991, the county areas patrolled by the sheriff had nearly a 16% drop in auto thefts, which Roache attributed in part to a special auto theft task force in East County.

The statistics cover sheriff’s service areas ranging from Encinitas to Del Mar and Vista to Poway in North County as well as Santee, Lemon Grove, Imperial Beach and unincorporated areas throughout the county.

Some communities experienced more crime than others over the past year, such as Lemon Grove, where total crime increased by 4%, and Encinitas, where crime jumped 8%, Roache said. The rise in crime in Encinitas can be attributed in part to population growth and the expansion of the community’s industrial base, he said.

Meanwhile, total crime dropped by nearly 16% in Imperial Beach, 12% in Del Mar and 8% in Santee, but like Encinitas and Lemon Grove, most other areas throughout the county experienced increased crime in 1991.

In making his plea for more manpower, Roache said his department is only able to provide an average of 1.1 sheriff’s deputies per 1,000 people. But the ratio drops as low as 0.36 deputies per 1,000 in Spring Valley and 0.45 per 1,000 in Fallbrook, Bonsall and Rainbow.

According to Sgt. John McBroom in Fallbrook, those numbers create an “indescribable” situation.

“We’re out chasing the radio all day long and we don’t have time to prowl the streets and look for the criminals before they commit the crimes,” McBroom said in an interview. “We’re reacting to crime instead of trying to prevent it.”

The Fallbrook station employs 14 patrolmen, two sergeants and three detectives to work an area that stretches 127 square miles, covers Fallbrook, Bonsall and Rainbow and is home to some 50,000 people, McBroom said.

“It’s very, very difficult and very frustrating,” McBroom said. “The only thing I can promise these three communities is two deputies per shift.”

Though under-staffed, McBroom said he and his colleagues made 50% more arrests last year than in any previous year, but he said his station still needs more personnel to meet the demands of the growing community.

The Sheriff’s Department is staffed with 1,500 sworn personnel, but half of those people work in detention facilities.

Roache said the shortage of deputies and the lack of adequate funding for the criminal justice system has brought the system to its knees.

“You can’t make a cake if you don’t have any flour,” he said.

Thursday’s press conference marked the first time the department released annual crime statistics to the public.

“The reason we’re releasing the data is that the public really has a need to know what’s happening with crime and they need to know how under-resourced this department is,” said Sheriff’s spokesman Dan Greenblat, in an interview after the press conference.

“It’s our argument that there needs to be a major reinvestment in law enforcement in this county.”

The statistics released Thursday show a 119% surge in total crime over the past decade. Aggravated assault, for example, grew by 143%; robbery by 93%; homicide by 89%, and rape by 38%.

Sheriff’s officials said the surge in violent crime is nearly five times the population growth in the sheriff’s jurisdiction in the years spanning from 1982 to 1991. Population in that period grew by 25%, the officials said.

Violent Crime Up

Violent crime has risen dramatically within 10 years in the area of San Diego County served by the Sheriff’s Department, increasing by far more than the population. Total violent crime more than doubled from 1982 to 1991, while the population rose 25%.

Aggravated Service Area Year Homicide Rape Robbery Assault Total Population 1982 27 154 505 1,138 1,824 562,325 1983 25 171 450 1,361 2,007 572,325 1984 38 148 535 1,443 2,164 588,950 1985 42 90 451 1,421 2,004 606,208 1986 65 158 640 1,943 2,806 613,512 1987 43 146 653 2,002 2,788 640,931 1988 42 132 629 2,170 2,973 668,824 1989 36 178 655 2,387 3,256 666,422 1990 45 164 754 2,450 3,413 689,480 1991 51 213 973 2,762 3,999 705.278 10-Year Change +89% +38% +93% +143% +119% +25%

Source: San Diego County Sheriff’s Department