Rise in Crime in Orange County
- alisoviejoyouthcou
- Dec 27, 2023
- 2 min read
By: Nika Marouf
Over the past year, cities nationwide, including Orange County, a city known for its safety, have fallen victim to an upsurge in crime. This epidemic of criminality has been attributed to pro-legal reforms, drug addiction, and movements to defund law enforcement and authority.
Rising crime in Orange County such as burglaries has had a direct impact on residents and businesses in the community, as it undermines Orange County’s togetherness and prevents people from investing economically and socially in businesses, ideas, and relationships.
Over the past year, more than 140 defendants have been charged with various types of burglaries and robberies in Orange County and recent cases are now being tied to an international
crime ring.
Orange County District Attorney Todd Spitzer and law enforcement officials have addressed the rise in crime, however, few efforts have been made to mitigate these offenses.
The annual crime report has unveiled that Californian’s fears of increasing crime are justified. In 2022, violent crime jumped 6.1% in California, while property crime increased by 6.2% and robberies jumped by 10.2%; many residents feel increasingly threatened in their own homes.
Rob Bonta, the attorney general of California issued a quiet statement stating, “While crime rates remain significantly below their historical highs, property and violent crimes continue to have devastating consequences for communities across the state, and gun violence remains a major threat to public safety.”
Governor Gavin Newsom, who appointed Bonta, has pursued weak tactics to reduce crime across California and often criticizes the criminal justice system and calls for reform while making public appearances to boost their reputation.
According to one of California’s Public Policy Institute’s periodic polls, nearly two in three Californians call violence and street crime in their local community a problem. This includes 31% who call them a big problem, a noticeable increase from February 2020 (24%).
So-called smash-and-grab invasions of stores have also become increasingly acceptable among criminals due to a low volume of law enforcement responses and store owners not being able to take action for fear of legal matters.
“Between 2020 and 2021 alone, the state lost 2,100 sworn staff and about 1,100 civilian staff,” according to the Public Policy Institute of California, and many law enforcement officers have been so overwhelmed with the number of calls and crime, that they aren’t able to efficiently respond. More statistics reveal that “the number of patrol officers per 100,000 residents is the lowest since at least 1991, while the total number of sworn officers per 100,000 residents is now at the lowest level since 1995.”
Increased police staffing in Orange County can substantially reduce crime rates; each individual officer reduces violent crime by 1.3% and property crime by 4.2% each year. Research finds that the benefits of hiring additional law enforcement officers significantly outweigh the costs and would greatly ease people’s feelings of uncertainty in their own communities.
While crime continues to rise in California and frankly, all across the United States, it seems as though politicians and those in power are doing little to make improvements in the community. As both violent and nonviolent crime increases, it will certainly play a major factor in people’s perceptions of not only politics and leadership but also where they choose to live and ultimately house their families from harm’s way.
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