Crime in 2000 Creeps Up Across County

Ventura County crime rose slightly last year after nearly a decade of steep declines, an increase driven in part by a big jump in reported thefts in the city of Ventura.

Total offenses rose by 118 to 17,661 in eight categories of serious crime that local jurisdictions report to state and federal agencies. The state Department of Justice and the FBI monitor homicides, rapes, robberies, assaults, burglary, car theft, petty theft and arson in annual reports.

Although a minuscule 0.7%, the increase mirrors a national trend of crime leveling off or beginning to inch upward.

The FBI reported in December that drops in the nation’s crime rate had stalled during the first six months of 2000, after eight years of record-setting declines.

Even with the slight change, Ventura County remains an exceedingly safe county compared with others of similar size. Sheriff Bob Brooks credits that to the county’s relative affluence and involved citizens.

“People in this county participate, they are involved with their kids, they volunteer, and they’re not afraid to report crime,” Brooks said.

He pointed to citizens’ recently volunteering to search for Megan Barroso, a missing Moorpark woman whose body was later found in a remote canyon.

“We had no problem marshaling hundreds of volunteers to try and find her,” Brooks said. “And that kind of attitude makes a big difference.”

Crime climbed substantially in Ventura, Thousand Oaks and Fillmore. The surge was highest in Ventura, which recorded 351 more offenses than in the previous year.

City officials have attributed most of the increase to a procedural change requiring police to follow FBI guidelines when documenting petty thefts. In Thousand Oaks, a spate of 23 rapes and 15 additional aggravated assaults pushed the number of offenses to 115 more than were recorded in 1999.

Thousand Oaks Mayor Dan Del Campo said there is no reason for alarm, noting that the city of white-collar professionals routinely competes for the “safest city” ranking nationwide in annual FBI reports.

“We’re starting from a low number to begin with,” Del Campo said. “Any increase seems sizable. I don’t think crime is out of control.”

In fact, said Sheriff’s Cmdr. Keith Parks, Thousand Oaks reported 16% fewer serious crimes during the first six months of 2001 than in the first half of 2000.

“It goes up slightly in some years and down slightly in other years,” said Parks, who acts as the city’s police chief. “We work hard to spot trends and do what we can do to stop crime.”

Offenses leveled off in Camarillo and Simi Valley and fell substantially in five other local cities.

Crime across the county increased in three categories of violent offenses: homicides, rapes and robberies. Homicides rose from 19 in 1999 to 24 last year. But that is still far below the 38 homicides recorded in 1980.

Rapes rose by 27 to 156 in 2000, and robberies climbed by 11 to 665. The 17,661 total offenses recorded last year represent a 43% decline compared with a decade ago.

*

/ Staff writers Tina Dirmann and Margaret Talev contributed to this report.