Westside : LAPD Crime Figures Show Mixed Results

Violent crime increased in parts of the Westside during the first seven months of the year while the same types of crime decreased in other areas, according to statistics released by the Los Angeles Police Department.

The total number of violent crimes--which include homicide, rape, robbery and assault--rose 10.4% in the LAPD’s West Los Angeles division and 4.6% in the Pacific division from January to July 31, compared with the same period last year.

In the West Los Angeles division, the total number of violent crimes rose from 1,020 to 1,126 during the same seven-month period. The division stretches from Pacific Palisades to Century City and from Bel-Air to the Sawtelle area.

In the Pacific division, crimes rose from 1,589 to 1,662 during the same time. The division serves coastal areas from Playa del Rey to Venice.

Police attributed the increases to what they called the cyclical nature of crime. Last year, crime dropped in both divisions, and this year’s increase represented a natural leveling off, said Lt. Frank Spangle of the West Los Angeles division.

Meanwhile, the Westside’s two other LAPD divisions experienced slight decreases in crime during the first seven months of the year when compared with the same period last year. In the Hollywood division, violent crimes decreased 7.6%--from 2,516 to 2,324. In the department’s Wilshire division, crimes dropped by 5.5%, from 3,540 to 3,346.

Police said those decreases reflected an overall drop in violent crime among most of the LAPD’s 18 divisions over the last year.