LAPD Says Violent Crime Continues to Fall
Carrying an encouraging trend into its fifth year, violent crime dropped across Los Angeles in the first half of 1996, with nearly every police station showing declines in either homicides, rapes, robberies or assaults.
The latest Los Angeles police statistics, which mirror state trends, show a 5.1% decrease in violent crime from January through June, compared to the same period last year. Overall reported crime, including car thefts and burglaries, fell 8.7% in the first half of the year, the statistics made public Tuesday show.
The number of killings citywide were nearly identical to last year--378 compared to 373 in 1995. But declines in such crimes as robberies and assaults helped produce the overall drop.
Property crimes, including car thefts and burglaries, declined 10%, the LAPD data shows--a decrease police attributed to more sophisticated alarm systems and greater vigilance by neighborhood residents and activists.
The Hollenbeck station, which covers the Eastside, showed the most dramatic decline in violent crime: 15.6%. Capt. Bruce Hagerty, who oversees the Hollenbeck station, said officers have focused heavily on the area’s high-crime streets with more patrols and task forces.
In the San Fernando Valley, all but the West Valley station showed declines in violent crimes.
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