Since shelter in place began on March 17th, countless people have had to remain in their homes during hours in which they are typically empty. With people working from home, crimes rates have dropped in some of the largest Bay Area cities as there is less opportunity to break into a car, house, etc. This drop in crime can be seen as a sliver lining amidst all of the coronavirus stress surrounding everyone.
According to The Chronicle’s review of released police data, “Violent crime was down 31% during the first week of the shelter-in-place order, compared with the same period in 2019. Property crime rates were nearly 50% lower during the same time frame.”
In San Jose, property crimes dropped 36% and violent crimes dropped 45% when compared to the same week in 2019. Additionally, robberies and residential burglaries dropped 56%. The total number of reported crimes in the South Bay city between March 15 and March 21 of 2020 was lower than any other week to date in the past two years, with a total of 373 incidents compared with an average of 548.
However, not all areas dropped as significantly. The Chronicle also reported that, “In Oakland, in the first week of the shutdown total reported crimes fell only slightly, tallying 250 incidents between March 16 and March 22, compared with 259 for approximately the same period in 2019. Violent crime rates were much lower, but property crime rates rose. After an initial decline the week after social distancing was enforced, reported crimes started to climb back up in Oakland, fueled in large part by an uptick in burglaries and theft.”
In more good news, the Bay Area is not the only place with a decline in crime rates; drops in crime have been reported all across the country from coast to coast.
Unfortunately, while crime has dropped, many officials are afraid that issues such as domestic violence or child abuse will increase as people are forced to stay home under stressful situations. Many hotlines have expressed their concern and availability to anyone who needs help.
Professor of criminology at UC Irvine, Richard McCleary, told the Chronicle, “Commercial crime depends largely on opportunity,” and since everyone is required to stay inside their home, he thinks, “This will be normal as long as everyone is staying inside.”
