Every so often, I read a letter to the editor stating that the author is “still afraid to be downtown after dark”, or something along those lines. Because I work in downtown Stockton and enjoy its restaurants and theaters on weekends, this kind of letter always surprises me.
I spoke with Lt. Cris Trulsson of the Stockton Police Department and asked him, point blank, “What’s the real story about downtown safety and security?” His answers were thoughtful and he backed them up with some pretty impressive statistics. “Between 1992 and 2002, there was a 52% drop in downtown crime. In just the last two years, crime in the downtown fell another 12.3%. If this seems like we’re not doing as good a job, keep in mind that, for this same period, the crime rates for the State of California (per the California Crime Index) have risen and crime statistics for all reporting districts in the City of Stockton have remained flat or even risen, slightly. But downtown experienced another double digit drop. I think these numbers speak for themselves.”
Additional security cameras are being installed downtown, bringing the total up to 32. And while cameras won’t deter every criminal, they do discourage many. Their high-quality digital images will be used as evidence in court. So while they can’t prevent every crime, there is a very good chance they will result in higher conviction rates, which do, indeed, drive down crime rates.
Stockton is a city, not a sleepy farm town where doors can be left unlocked and “everybody knows your name”. However, we are no more likely to experience crime in downtown Stockton than in any other part of the city. Maybe, even less likely. Lt Trulsson is right, those numbers speak for themselves!