Sacramento police chief says violent crime in the city is on the decline
SACRAMENTO – Violent crime is trending down in Sacramento despite recent FBI data revealing violent crime rose in California.
So how did the capital city tackle crime? Police looked at areas with heavy violent crime by using data. Then, it looked toward its partners to help reach those communities.
Police Chief Kathy Lester announced her police department is seeing an 18% decrease in violent crime compared to this time last year.
"What we also saw was a huge reduction in the number of shootings and the number of people getting shot in our city," Lester said. "Huge number of weapons being seized from our streets."
From January through September, aggravated assaults went down by 21%, robbery decreased by 6%, and homicide and rape went down by roughly 40%, respectively.
"That's probably good information to know, but I'd say I'm not sure if I've noticed a difference while I've been here," Morgan Adams said.
Tiffany Williams also agreed.
"I don't think it's down. It's just been masked," Williams said.
What is behind this trend? In 2022, Sacramento police announced its Violent Crime Reduction Strategy.
Also, the U.S. Department of Justice selected six cities, including the capital city, to be a Public Safety Partnership Location, in which federal partners help provide technical assistance and peer-to-peer guidance.
Police also worked closely with community-based organizations specializing in violence prevention.
"We are seeing a decrease in violent crimes citywide, but we can think of incidents off the top of our head where violence is still occurring," said Derrell Roberts, the founder and CEO of Roberts Family Development Center.
The center offers supportive services for families in north Sacramento.
While it does not receive funding for its violence prevention work with children, it does believe these community-based organizations play a major role in deterring crime.
"Many of these community-based organizations become the fabric of the neighborhoods most challenged," Roberts said.
From there, a bridge is built between the community and the police.