Westside : Serious Offenses Down 12% in Santa Monica

Santa Monica’s serious crime rate declined during the first six months of 1995 compared with the same period last year, but crime in Beverly Hills increased slightly during that period over the year before.

The Santa Monica Police Department reported that the city had nearly 12% fewer serious crimes compared with the first half of last year.

These results came on the heels of an 18% decrease in serious crime in all of 1994, which the Police Department says is the biggest decline in the city’s history.

Rape, aggravated assault, robbery, burglary, theft and auto theft declined across the board in Santa Monica in the first half of 1995, although there were five murders during the period just as there were in the first six months of 1994.

Burglaries showed the largest decline, 24% fewer than last year. Theft was down 11% between early 1994 and early 1995, and aggravated assault fell 9%. Robberies and car thefts were down about 6%. Rapes were down from 21 to 18.

In Beverly Hills, serious crime dropped substantially in most categories, although a 75% increase in residential burglaries drove the overall rate up by 3.8% during the first six months of the year.

Robberies dropped 24% in the first six months of 1995, car thefts decreased 23% and aggravated assaults were down 17%. Rapes fell from three in 1994 to two in the first half of this year.