Property Crimes

Deepa Bharath The city saw an increase in violent crimes but a decrease in property crimes during the first nine months of 2003 compared with the same time in 2002, a report released by the state attorney general's office on Wednesday showed. Overall, crime was up by 1.4%, the report said. Violent crimes, a category that includes murders, rapes, robberies and assaults, increased by 10.4%, and property crimes -- burglaries and auto thefts -- dropped by 1.6%.

Serious violent and property crimes in Costa Mesa have likely declined by about 10% from 2005 to 2006, according to preliminary statistics compiled by the Costa Mesa Police Department. Police credit the decrease to a concerted effort to reduce thefts and burglaries. The crimes that were tabulated were homicides, assaults and rapes, as well as property crimes like thefts, burglaries and larcenies. Police only had statistics for incidents through November and don't expect December's numbers to dramatically change the percentages.

COSTA MESA - Violent crime in Costa Mesa dropped slightly in the first half of 2011, while property crime increased by about 70 incidents when compared with the same time period last year. The FBI this week released its preliminary unified crime reports (UCR), which showed that between January and June 2011, there were 114 violent crimes citywide - down from 122 during the same period in 2010. The city saw an increase in murder, from one to three, and a drop in aggravated assault from 58 to 49. Property crimes increased from 1,565 to 1,632 in the beginning of this year, with six arson cases compared with three.

Costa Mesa reported a significant drop in crime in 2010, and Irvine kept its hold on its distinction as America's safest large city for the seventh straight year, according to FBI data released Monday. The data analyzed cities with populations of 100,000 residents or more, and looked at violent crimes and property crimes from 2009 and 2010. Among violent crimes considered were murder, rape, robbery and aggravated assault. Property crimes included burglary, theft, motor vehicle theft and arson.

FBI releases national crime statistics The FBI on Monday released crime statistics showing a drop nationwide in violent and property crimes. The Preliminary Annual Uniform Crime Report compared 2004 statistics from 12,715 police agencies serving populations of 100,000 or more. Nationwide, violent crimes decreased 1.7% in 2004 and property crimes fell 1.8%, according to the report. As reported last month in California Department of Justice statistics, the number of violent crimes in Costa Mesa dropped from 304 in 2003 to 284 last year -- a 6.6% decrease.

The violent- and property-crime rates in Newport-Mesa dropped between 2008 and 2009, mirroring a statewide trend of fewer offenses being reported, state officials announced Friday. In California, there were fewer homicides, robberies, car thefts and arsons than in the last three years, according to the state Justice Department. Orange County also followed the state's numbers, with a 3.6% drop in violent crimes, 10.5% fewer property crimes and a 3.7% drop in larcenies and thefts, the department reported.

Burglaries and car thefts in Costa Mesa increased sharply in the first half of the year compared with the same period in 2004, according to a report released Monday. The statistics were compiled by the state attorney general's office for the period of January through June, as reported by police agencies of cities with more than 100,000 residents. Statewide statistics reflected an overall decrease of 1.8% in violent crimes and an increase of 2.9% in property crimes, the report showed.

COSTA MESA — Violent crime in Costa Mesa dropped 14% in 2009 compared with the year prior, according to statistics released in the FBI's annual report on violent crime. There were 301 violent crimes in Costa Mesa in 2009, compared with 350 the year before. The FBI considers homicides, robberies, rapes and aggravated assaults violent crime. There were only two homicides between 2007 and 2009, police statistics show. In October 2009, police said 76-year-old Kenneth Leake shot his wife in their home off Orange Avenue, accounting for the lone homicide case.

COSTA MESA - Violent crime in Costa Mesa dropped slightly in the first half of 2011, while property crime increased by about 70 incidents when compared with the same time period last year. The FBI this week released its preliminary unified crime reports (UCR), which showed that between January and June 2011, there were 114 violent crimes citywide - down from 122 during the same period in 2010. The city saw an increase in murder, from one to three, and a drop in aggravated assault from 58 to 49. Property crimes increased from 1,565 to 1,632 in the beginning of this year, with six arson cases compared with three.

Police use a variety of tools, including handcuffs, guns, batons, persuasion and education, to fight crime. But Newport Beach police are now tapping into another resource: humor. In a short clip posted on YouTube, Newport Beach police urged residents to keep their cars locked — and to leave valuables at home, never in their cars. Officer Dave Darling crunches the numbers on how many property crimes in Newport are related to vehicles — 37% — and how many involved unlocked cars — more than 50%. In other parts of the two-minute, 37-second video, Darling says it takes an average of five seconds for potential thieves to steal valuables from a vehicle.

Costa Mesa reported a significant drop in crime in 2010, and Irvine kept its hold on its distinction as America's safest large city for the seventh straight year, according to FBI data released Monday. The data analyzed cities with populations of 100,000 residents or more, and looked at violent crimes and property crimes from 2009 and 2010. Among violent crimes considered were murder, rape, robbery and aggravated assault. Property crimes included burglary, theft, motor vehicle theft and arson.

COSTA MESA — Violent crime in Costa Mesa dropped 14% in 2009 compared with the year prior, according to statistics released in the FBI's annual report on violent crime. There were 301 violent crimes in Costa Mesa in 2009, compared with 350 the year before. The FBI considers homicides, robberies, rapes and aggravated assaults violent crime. There were only two homicides between 2007 and 2009, police statistics show. In October 2009, police said 76-year-old Kenneth Leake shot his wife in their home off Orange Avenue, accounting for the lone homicide case.

The violent- and property-crime rates in Newport-Mesa dropped between 2008 and 2009, mirroring a statewide trend of fewer offenses being reported, state officials announced Friday. In California, there were fewer homicides, robberies, car thefts and arsons than in the last three years, according to the state Justice Department. Orange County also followed the state's numbers, with a 3.6% drop in violent crimes, 10.5% fewer property crimes and a 3.7% drop in larcenies and thefts, the department reported.

Newport Beach police saw a significant increase in identity thefts and counterfeiting in 2008 compared to a year before, while, according to FBI statistics, Costa Mesa began seeing fewer property crimes and burglaries in 2008. According to the FBI’s twice-yearly report released this week, violent crime nationally looks to be decreasing. The bureau compares statistics from the first half of 2007 and first half of 2008 for cities of 100,000 people or more. Data for Newport Beach, which is less than 100,000 in population, were not available through the FBI, but through the police department.