Homicides down county-wide, as some SGV cities see increases

LOS ANGELES -- Homicide have been reduced by 12.9 percent in Los Angeles County during the first 11 months of the year, as some San Gabriel Valley cities saw increases, according to figures released over the weekend by the Los Angeles County Sheriff's Department.
While 187 homicides were reported county-wide in the first 11 months of 2009, 163 had been reported as of Nov. 30 of this year, according to sheriff's data. Homicides are down by 50 percent compared with five years ago.
The number of annual killings is the lowest since 1975, sheriff's officials said.
But while much of the county witnessed a decrease in homicides so far this year, sheriff's stations in Temple City, San Dimas, East Los Angeles, Lakewood and Carson saw increases.
The Temple station reported a 76 percent increase in killings, from 5 in 2009 to 9 in 2010, and the sheriff's Dan Dimas Station saw an increase in homicides, from two reported in 2009 to three in 2010.
The sheriff's Carson station reported a 66.6 percent increase in murders, from 6 in last year to 10 this year; the sheriff's East Los Angles Station reported a 33.3 percent increase from 12 to 16; and the sheriff's Lakewood Station saw homicides rise by 40 percent, from five to 7.
Several sheriff's stations saw significant decreases in homicides, most noticeably at the sheriff's Norwalk Station, where reported homicides dropped from 15 last year to three this year -- a decrease of 80 percent.
The Pico Rivera Station saw homicides drop 50 percent in the first 11 months of the year, from eight last year to four this year.
Deputies at the sheriff's Industry Station investigated seven homicides through November of this year, down 30 percent from 10 last year.
The report also noted county-wide declines in reports of violent crimes and serious property crimes, although the Altadena station reported a 43.8 percent increase in property crimes.
Station officials have attributed the increased property crime rate in Altadena to a rash of burglaries toward the beginning of the year. The burglary trend has been decreasing in more recent months.
The report details reported crime statistics for the unincorporated communities and 42 contract cities policed by the sheriff's department and includes numbers for this year, last year and 2005. The 119-page report can be read at www.lasd.org.
-- City News Service contributed to this report.