?According to a report released Nov. 6 from the San Diego Association of Governments, during the first six months of 2006, the violent crime rate in San Diego County increased from its 10-year low in mid-2005, while property crime declined.
“Crime in the San Diego Region: Mid-Year 2006” details crime for all 18 cities and other county communities and serves as a tool for local law enforcement agencies in gauging the effectiveness of various prevention programs.
A total of 6,740 violent crimes were reported to local law enforcement from January to June 2006, an average of 37 per day.
While violent crime, including homicide, rape, robbery and assault, increased from 4.35 per 1,000 in 2005 to 4.40 per 1,000 midyear 2006 across the region, the city of San Diego was among seven areas with a lower crime rate in midyear 2006.
A total of 46,426 property crimes were reported to local law enforcement agencies in the first half of the year, about 256 per day. The majority of crimes (56 percent) were larcenies, 26 percent were motor vehicle thefts and 18 percent were burglaries.
For the third year in a row, the midyear crime rate decreased from 32 per 1,000 residents in 2005 to 30.28 in 2006. Almost two-thirds of the 25 reporting agencies had a decrease in property crime rates midyear 2006.
Numbers of actual crimes for peninsula communities – including La Playa, Loma Portal, Midway District, Ocean Beach, Point Loma Heights, Roseville/Fleet Ridge, Sunset Cliffs and Wooded Area – were 146 total violent crimes and 1,999 total property crimes for the year 2006 (from January to September), compared with 2005 reports of 272 total violent crimes and 2,342 total property crimes.