How High is Stockton Crime?
With its crime index of four out of 100, crime seems to be on the rise in Stockton. However, recent reports have indicated that crime overall in Stockton is at an all-time low.
When the police chief in Stockton was sworn in in 2012, he insisted that the crime rate was intolerable. Since then, he has been able to report that great strides have been made at reducing the level of crime. Although this news is positive, if you find yourself or a loved one is having a run-in with the law, it is important to know a good bail bonds company.
Statistics that were just recently released show that as of 2015, Stockton has seen a 15-year low in crime overall. This is a great level of progress considering just how recently it was that the city was dealing with encroaching violence and crime.
These new statistics were thanked in large part due to community and police strategies that were put into place and seem to be working. The police chief thanked both his police force as well as the greater community for their joint effort at stopping crime.
This all is especially positive considering that the police force has been dealing with limited funding and a smaller staff. It shows that these initiatives really are doing their job even with a limited police force.
Instead of throwing up their hands, the police force in Stockton decided to take the smarter approach and get the community involved to help police their own neighborhoods.
These community initiatives have included anonymous tips, community engagement initiatives, and plain old communication in order to work in tandem with each other.
The police chief acknowledged that we shouldn’t be celebrating too much as the numbers are still too high. He did say, however, that Stockton is at east moving in the right direction. Perhaps that’s all that matters.
The police force in Stockton responded to around 400,000 calls for service in 2015. In that time, officers confiscated around 900 firearms. The police chief then insisted that taking 900 guns off the street must have had an incalculable impact. No one knows what kind of a difference that made in violent crime, but it surely reduced the number by quite a bit.
The police department also noted that there was a 68 percent decrease in violent crime in an area where the force deployed a Neighborhood Blitz program. Officers don’t think for a second that this is a coincidence. It’s an example of simple, community-oriented programs simply working in the community.
Officials are also seeing a 22 percent decrease in violent crime in Stockton. This is a big step, as Stockton has consistently topped the list of most crime-ridden cities in the country.
Coming back from 2012, where the crime was high and the city had just filed for municipal bankruptcy, the city has since made smart use of its community initiatives. Considering that police officer jobs were cut in 2012, this was the soundest choice overall.
It’s also very smart when you look at the fact that the very people who live in the community are helping police themselves, as they will have the greatest idea as to how their community is doing crime-wise.
The main initiatives that have been used have been to crack down on illegal guns and gangs while putting programs in place that will help to prevent children from entering into a life of crime. They used Operation Ceasefire as well. This was an initiative to reach at-risk youth and get them away from guns by instead finding programs for them.
There are a variety of reasons why Stockton is on the rise. While this list we’ve assembled isn’t exhaustive, it should give you an idea as to what the crime rates in Stockton have looked like over the last couple of years and extending beyond even into the past.
It’s by using clever community outreach programs that the city of Stockton has been able to maximize its police force while simultaneously reaching and stimulating the city and community they serve into making positive change for their own community.
Time will tell how Stockton will fare going into the future, but as of right now things are looking much better for the city. Statistics do always change, so it’s best that you check up with the latest statistics if you want to keep up with Stockton’s progress.
Read about San Francisco crime stats