The San Diego region’s overall crime rate was down 1 percent at midyear 2015, though homicide showed a slight uptick, according to a report released Monday by the regional planning agency SANDAG.
“The relative stability in the region’s crime rates is notable, given legislative changes enacted in recent years that have resulted in more ex-offenders returning to local communities after incarceration,” said Dr. Cynthia Burke, director of SANDAG’s criminal justice research division.
“There have been concerns that crime rates would rise drastically based on these changes, but we’re not seeing that reflected in the numbers at this point,” she said.
The report Crime in the San Diego Region Mid-Year 2015 Statistics found the following:
- A total of 5,335 violent crimes — homicide, rape, robbery, and aggravated assault — were reported to local police in the region between January and June 2015, an average of 29 per day.
- There were four more homicides in the first half of 2015 than there were during the same period last year. So far, 43 homicides have occurred across the region, compared to 39 in 2014.
- The report found domestic violence incidents up 4 percent.
- Aggravated assaults were down 6 percent.
- Arsons were down 10 percent at mid-year with 195, down from the 216 recorded last year.
- A total of 30,449 property crimes were reported to local law enforcement agencies. The property crime rate dropped slightly, with the number of burglaries declining more than any other crime – by 13 percent.
- Residential burglaries dropped 11 percent, while non-residential burglaries fell 15 percent.
- Motor vehicle thefts decreased 5 percent, to 4,777 in 2015
- Larcenies were up 4 percent at mid-year, with a total of 20,651 larcenies having been committed countywide, compared to 19,941 over the same period last year.
The San Diego Association of Governments , known as SANDAG, is the region’s primary public planning, transportation, and research agency. It represents the region’s 18 cities and the county government.