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Crime in San Francisco

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San Francisco
Crime rates* (2019)
Violent crimes
Homicide4.5
Rape36.6
Robbery344.8
Aggravated assault283.7
Total violent crime669.6
Property crimes
Burglary524.1
Larceny-theft4,501.8
Motor vehicle theft479.6
Arson31
Total property crime5,505.6
Notes

*Number of reported crimes per 100,000 population.


Source: FBI 2019 UCR data

San Francisco currently has lower-than-average rates of violent crime when compared with other major U.S. cities, while property crimes, such as theft and burglary, are higher than the national average.[1]

In 2011, 50 murders were reported, which is 6.1 per 100,000 people. This coincided with a period when California's homicide rate fell to a 44-year low.[2] There were about 134 rapes, 3,142 robberies, and about 2,139 assaults. There were about 4,469 burglaries, 25,100 thefts, and 4,210 motor vehicle thefts.[3] The Tenderloin area has the highest crime rate in San Francisco: 70% of the city's violent crimes, and around one-fourth of the city's murders, occur in this neighborhood. The Tenderloin also sees high rates of drug abuse, gang violence, and prostitution.[4] Another area with high crime rates is the Bayview-Hunters Point area. In the first six months of 2015 there were 25 murders compared to 14 in the first six months of 2014. However, the murder rate is still much lower than in past decades.[5] That rate, though, did rise again by the close of 2016. According to the San Francisco Police Department, there were 59 murders in the city in 2016, an annual total that marked a 13.5% increase in the number of homicides (52) from 2015.[6]

In November 2021, San Francisco District Attorney Chesa Boudin’s office stated that about 2% of auto burglaries in San Francisco result in an arrest.[7]

As of August 2022, the SFPD was mired in a critical understaffing crisis, with 300 less officers than what it should have.[8]

In September 2022, the San Francisco Chronicle reported that a poll of 1,653 city residents found that over the past five years, 45% of San Francisco residents had been the victim of theft and 24% had either been threatened with violence or had been the victim of a violent crime.[9] Over the next two years, the crime rate skyrocketed in San Francisco's traditionally safer western neighborhoods, including the Sunset District[10] and the Richmond District.[11]

As of 2023, the city's crime issues were beginning to affect its major league sports franchises. In December 2023, after the Los Angeles Dodgers won out over the San Francisco Giants to become Shohei Ohtani's next baseball team, Buster Posey told The Athletic that "reservation[s]" among Ohtani's people about "the state of the city right now" were apparently among the factors that swayed Ohtani towards choosing to stay in Southern California.[12] Posey also noted that more generally, concerns about crime and drugs have been an issue when pursuing free agents.[12] Posey stressed that Ohtani had not said or done anything himself to imply that his safety was a factor, and it was the people around him who were concerned.[12] Farhan Zaidi explained that the Giants had matched every financial demand from Ohtani's side, meaning that Ohtani's final decision came down to other factors besides money.[12] On August 31, 2024, San Francisco 49ers wide receiver Ricky Pearsall was shot in the chest during an attempted robbery just east of Union Square.[13] Pearsall was admitted to San Francisco General Hospital, treated, and released the following afternoon.[14] The 49ers placed Pearsall on the reserve/NFI list, meaning that he would be ineligible to play for the first four weeks of the 2024 NFL season.[15]

By August 2024, the San Francisco County Superior Court was so overwhelmed with criminal cases that it had no choice but to dismiss 70 misdemeanor cases due to the unavailability of judges and courtrooms to hold speedy trials.[16][17] One of the cases thus dismissed was a misdemeanor vehicular manslaughter case arising from a May 2022 crash which killed two Florida tourists.[16][17]

Gangs

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Several street gangs have operated in the city over the decades, including MS-13,[18] the Sureños and Norteños in the Mission District.[19] In 2008, a MS-13 member killed three family members as they were arriving home in the city's Excelsior District. His victims had no relationship with him, nor did they have any known gang or street crime involvement.

African-American street gangs familiar in other cities, including the Bloods, Crips and their sets, have struggled to establish footholds in San Francisco,[20] while police and prosecutors have been accused of liberally labeling young African-American males as gang members.[21] However, gangs founded in San Francisco with majority Black memberships have made their presence in the city. The gang Westmob, associated with Oakdale Mob and Sunnydale housing project gangs from the southeast area of the city, was involved in a gang war with Hunters Point-based Big Block from 1999 to the 2000s.[22] They claim territory from West Point to Middle Point in the Hunters Point projects.[23] In 2004, a Westmob member fatally shot a SFPD officer and wounded his partner; he was sentenced to life without parole in 2007.[24]

Criminal gangs with shot callers in China, including Triad groups such as the Wo Hop To, have been reported active in San Francisco.[25] In 1977, an ongoing rivalry between two Chinese gangs led to a shooting attack at the Golden Dragon restaurant in Chinatown, which left 5 people dead and 11 wounded. None of the victims in this attack were gang members. Five members of the Joe Boys gang were arrested and convicted of the crime.[26] In 1990, a gang-related shooting killed one man and wounded six others outside a nightclub near Chinatown.[27] In 1998, six teenagers were shot and wounded at the Chinese Playground; a 16-year-old boy was subsequently arrested.[28]

Shoplifting

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As of 2024, San Francisco has received significant attention for shoplifting incidents, with videos of such occurrences gaining widespread attention on social media.[29][30] Some reports suggest that shoplifting has contributed to store closures in the city.[31][32]

The rise in shoplifting has been linked by some to a 2014 ballot initiative that reclassified thefts under $950 from a felony to a misdemeanor.[33] However, others argue that the extent of shoplifting in San Francisco has been overstated, attributing the issue to broader economic inequality.[34]

References

[edit]
  1. ^ "Key facts about crime in San Francisco". The San Francisco Chronicle. Retrieved 1 May 2023.
  2. ^ Demian Bulwa (January 5, 2012). "Through hard times, S.F. killings at historic lows". San Francisco Chronicle. Retrieved July 29, 2013.
  3. ^ "San Francisco crime rates and statistics". NeighborhoodScout. Retrieved July 29, 2013.
  4. ^ "The Tenderloin". FoundSF. Retrieved July 29, 2013.
  5. ^ Vivian Ho (July 4, 2015). "Bay Area homicide rates remain low". San Francisco Chronicle.
  6. ^ Bodley, Michael (January 4, 2017). "SF cops say they notch 2 arrests in last 2 homicides of 2016." SFGate. Retrieved January 17, 2017.
  7. ^ San Francisco DA Says Few Auto Smash-and-Grab Burglaries End With An Arrest Betty Yu, CBS, November 10, 2021
  8. ^ Miguel, Ken; Matier, Phil (August 3, 2022). "SFPD chief worries about loss of hundreds of officers amid staffing shortage". ABC7. Retrieved August 17, 2022.
  9. ^ Swan, Rachel (September 13, 2022). "Here's how many San Franciscans say they've been the victim of a crime, according to new poll". San Francisco Chronicle. Retrieved October 16, 2022.
  10. ^ Lindqwister, Liz (February 27, 2023). "'Worse than it's ever been': Crime rising in San Francisco's sleepy Sunset District". The San Francisco Standard. Retrieved August 17, 2024.
  11. ^ Mishanec, Nora (March 14, 2024). "SF's Richmond residents 'traumatized' by rising crime, break-ins". The San Francisco Chronicle. Retrieved August 17, 2024.
  12. ^ a b c d Baggarly, Andrew (December 12, 2023). "Shohei Ohtani turned down Giants' $700M offer. Buster Posey reflects on team's 'free-agent slump'". The Athletic. Retrieved December 16, 2023.
  13. ^ DiFeliciantonio, Chase; Vaziri, Aidin; Leonard, Christian; Toledo, Aldo (2024-08-31). "49ers' Ricky Pearsall shot in chest during S.F. Union Square robbery". San Francisco Chronicle. Retrieved 2024-08-31.
  14. ^ Barrows, Matt; Puleo, Mark (September 1, 2024). "49ers' Ricky Pearsall released from hospital after being shot, did not require surgery: Source". The Athletic (The New York Times). Retrieved September 14, 2024.
  15. ^ Maiocco, Matt (September 2, 2024). "49ers rookie Ricky Pearsall placed on NFI list, out first four weeks". NBC Los Angeles.
  16. ^ a b Kelly, George (August 15, 2024). "'I have been failed': Victims slam court as domestic violence, deadly driving cases tossed". The San Francisco Standard. Retrieved August 17, 2024.
  17. ^ a b Cassidy, Megan; Wilson, Elizabeth; Egelko, Bob (August 15, 2024). "Dozens of SF misdemeanors dismissed for taking too long". The San Francisco Chronicle. Retrieved August 17, 2024.
  18. ^ "La Mara Salvatrucha Street Gang – San Francisco". Sfweekly.com. Archived from the original on July 26, 2013. Retrieved July 29, 2013.
  19. ^ Bulwa, Demian (May 27, 2005). "SAN FRANCISCO / Sureño gang's threat growing in Bay Area / Widow's apartment is at heart of group's Mission District turf". San Francisco Chronicle. Retrieved March 29, 2014.
  20. ^ Albert Samaha (September 26, 2012). "Crip-less: S.F.'s Dislike of Franchises Extends to Street Gangs – Page 1 – News – San Francisco". SF Weekly. Retrieved July 29, 2013.
  21. ^ Chris Roberts (December 2015). "Mario Woods and Gang Injunctions". SF Weekly. Retrieved September 5, 2016.
  22. ^ "Straight Outta Hunter's Point DVD". Archived from the original on September 14, 2012. Retrieved September 14, 2012.
  23. ^ Sward, Susan (December 16, 2001). "THE KILLING STREETS / A Cycle of Vengeance / BLOOD FEUD / In Bayview-Hunters Point, a series of unsolved homicides has devastated one of S.F.'s most close-knit communities". SFGATE.
  24. ^ Van Derbeken, Jaxon; Lagos, Marisa; Buchanan, Wyatt (April 20, 2007). "AK-47 cop killer gets life". San Francisco Chronicle.
  25. ^ Mary Spicuzza (August 1, 2007). "Enter The Dragon". SF Weekly. Retrieved September 5, 2016.
  26. ^ Vanessa Hua (October 7, 2006). "Golden Dragon Closes and owes a million". San Francisco Chronicle. Retrieved December 6, 2011.
  27. ^ Jim Herron Zamora (May 15, 1990). "S.F. Chinatown Shootings May Be Tied to Gang". Los Angeles Times. Retrieved September 16, 2012.
  28. ^ Vanessa Hua (June 20, 1998). "Boy, 16, Arrested in S.F. Chinatown Shooting Rampage / Suspect was at scene but didn't fire gun, cops say". San Francisco Chronicle. Retrieved September 16, 2012.
  29. ^ Fuller, Thomas (May 21, 2021). "San Francisco's Shoplifting Surge". The New York Times.
  30. ^ "After San Francisco shoplifting video goes viral, officials argue thefts aren't rampant". NBC News. 2021-07-14. Retrieved 2024-09-12.
  31. ^ "Macy's Union Square workers blame rampant shoplifting for closure". The San Francisco Standard. 2024-02-28. Retrieved 2024-09-12.
  32. ^ "Walgreens To Close Another Downtown San Francisco Location". The San Francisco Standard. 2023-10-20. Retrieved 2024-09-12.
  33. ^ "Here's Why San Francisco is Experiencing a Shoplifting Surge That's Putting Some Stores Out of Business". fee.org. Retrieved 2024-09-12.
  34. ^ Neilson, Susie (June 26, 2021). "A viral video has everyone talking about San Francisco's 'shoplifting surge.' But is it real?". The San Francisco Chronicle.

See also

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