Crime dropped in Oxnard in 2021

By El Latino Newsroom
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The Oxnard Police Department made public its report on crime data, saying this past year, much like 2020, presented unusual challenges and changes that were often unexpected and unpredictable. 

“However, Oxnard remained steadfast and resilient, despite the many challenges and often unpredictable changes. As a result, overall reported crime in Oxnard for the year 2021 showed a decrease of 18.01%,” said OXPD Chief Jason Benites. 

in a press release.

For the second year in a row, impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic have forced virtually every household, business, and organization to make changes and adapt.  

“Law enforcement continued to find itself challenged from many angles, namely in terms of subsequent COVID surges, employee health protection, workforce and operational adjustments, socially distanced policing; and reduced jail capacity.   However, Oxnard was fortunate, and continued to withstand the challenges,” the OXPD say in a press release.

Contained within this news release are the Uniform Crime Reporting (UCR) statistics for 2021. 

The UCR program, managed by the US Department of Justice, collects crime statistics from over 18,000 law enforcement agencies throughout the country. 

“The OXPD has tracked UCR statistics for the past five decades. The statistics are classified into eight (8) “Part One” crimes that fall under two broad categories: violent crime and property crime,” said the OXPD.  

As noted in some of the charts, the City of Oxnard reported an overall 18.01% decrease in reported Part 1 crimes for 2021. 

There were 920 fewer crimes reported in 2021 than in the previous year. 

For violent crimes, there was a 6.7% decrease, and for property crimes, there was a 19.9% decrease, as compared to 2020.

“I must commend the Oxnard Police Department’s employees on their response and dedication to the City of Oxnard during another challenging year. I would also like to thank our community for continuing to work alongside us,” said Chief Police Jason Benites. 

VIOLENT CRIMES

There were 13 homicides in 2021, which is 5 more than the previous year. 

Oxnard’s 2021 homicide clearance rate was 38%, all of which were cleared by arrests. Additionally, arrest warrants have been issued 2 2021 homicide cases. 

The authorities also stated that violent crime experienced a reduction in robberies (-33.2%), with an increase in aggravated assaults (+9.2%) and rape (+1.2%). 

“There was an overall 7.2% decrease in domestic violence-related offenses in 2021 as compared to the previous year,” the OXPD said. T

Meanwhile, property crime in Oxnard experienced reductions in burglary (-32.9%), larceny (commonly referred to as theft) (-12.7%), and motor vehicle theft (-40.7%). 

The sole category in property crime for which there was an increase was arson (+61.9%), with 26 more arson incidents than the previous year. 

“The increase in arson incidents is attributed to a reporting methodology error between the fire department and the police department. Training was conducted for both departments to prevent reporting errors in the future,” the Chief Benites said.

“It was the goal of the OXPD to report the 2021 crime statistics using the National Incident-Based Reporting System (NIBRS). NIBRS is viewed as a more comprehensive reporting system as compared to the UCR program. Testing of NIBRS is still being conducted to ensure timely and accurate crime statistics,” Chief Benites said. 

As a result, in the future, the OXPD will release year-end crime statistics from data collected using NIBRS.

In 1930, the national UCR Program was created as a way for the federal government to collect a reliable set of crime statistics from city, county, state, tribal, and federal law enforcement agencies throughout the country. 

The OXPD has been contributing UCR statistics for five (5) decades.

The UCR program utilizes a hierarchical system to prioritize and categorize offenses. 

The hierarchy rule requires that an incident with multiple offenses or charges be narrowed down to a single offense, usually the most serious charge.