Last Updated on December 3, 2024 by BVN
Overview: California Governor Gavin Newsom has deployed a team of California Highway Patrol officers to San Bernardino to address the city’s higher crime rates and gun violence. The initiative includes added investigative support to focus on organized crime and violent street gangs. The governor has also announced the largest investment on record to combat organized retail crime in CA history, a 310% increase. Despite calls for change, little has changed when it comes to funding the police and holding them accountable.
S.E. Williams
“Whether in the Bay Area, the Central Valley, or Southern California — we are monitoring and stand ready to step in and support local law enforcement to protect communities and keep Californians safe,” declared CA Governor Gavin Newsom at the end of October when he announced plans to deploy a team of CA Highway Patrol officers to operate within the boundaries of the city of San Bernardino.
The objective of the initiative is to “address the city’s higher crime rates and gun violence. The initiative also includes added investigative support to focus on organized crime and violent street gangs.
San Bernardino’s dubious distinction as a city troubled by crime is not new. But, violent crimes are down by 13% in the city this year, though recent data shows the city’s violent crime rate is nearly double the statewide average, while the homicide rate is three times the state average. Certainly, the goal is continuous improvement but to position this year’s crime results as some type of historic aberration tends toward the hyperbolic.
Mayor Helen Tran stressed how the extra support will strengthen public safety in the community. “With this new state and local collaboration in San Bernardino, we can continue to impact criminal enterprises targeting our neighborhoods and businesses,” stated Tran.
This so called “surge,” as coined by the governor’s office, is adding units on the ground and in the air. The effort is also intended to target “sideshow” activities and stolen vehicles. Sideshows, also known as street takeovers, occur when one or several drivers begin to drive recklessly on a portion of a roadway. Such events are often observed by dozens, if not, hundreds of spectators.
It is important to note, however, that San Bernardino is not being singled out. The governor hopes to achieve success in San Bernardino similar to what his office claims is already being experienced in the communities of Oakland, Bakersfield and San Francisco.
According to the governor’s office, the surge in these communities has resulted in “a total of more than 3,200 arrests, the recovery of nearly 3,000 stolen vehicles, the seizure of more than 170 illegal firearms, and illicit drugs, including fentanyl, taken off the streets.” These are good numbers but as compared to what? Is this over and above what these cities’ normally produce in terms of police activity in these specific categories? Are the crime rates in these cities trending lower since the policy has been in place? It is too soon to tell.
“We are sending additional CHP support to help local law enforcement aggressively suppress criminal activity and provide this community with a new level of safety and accountability.”
Governor Gavin Newsom
While we don’t know with certainty what the impact of the CHP “Surge” will ultimately have in San Bernardino and other areas of the state where the strategy has been deployed, what we do know, according to a Crime Trends in California report by the Public Policy Institute of CA, is the state’s violent crime rate rose only slightly in 2023, but still remains above pre-pandemic levels. The state’s overall violent crime rate increased by 1.7%, from 495 crimes per 100,000 residents in 2022, to 503 in 2023. Of course, like most other places in the country, California saw an escalation in violent crime during 2020, the first year of the pandemic.
In 2023, however, homicides and rapes decreased by 13.7% and 3.0%, respectively, while robbery (theft with force) and aggravated assault increased by 3.8% and 1.7% respectfully. Robberies have been ticking up since 2021 but remain 3.1% below their pre-pandemic level.
Although most clearly remember the COVID-19 Pandemic, it seems there is a collective memory loss in relation to the other historic event that occurred in 2020–the international uprising against police brutality and the call for reimagining (defunding) how our local police departments are funded and operate. That passionate outcry seems to have fallen by the way side along with masks and school closures even though the police continue to kill and those killings continue to be questioned, challenged.
According to the nonprofit, Campaign Zero, 2023 was the deadliest year since it began Mapping Police Violence data in 2013. There were 1,329 deaths due to police violence in 2023. On average, U.S. law enforcement killed someone every 6.6 hours. Sadly, according to the report, there were only 13 days last year where law enforcement did not kill someone, somewhere in America.
2023 Was the Deadliest Year in a Decade
Law Enforcement Killed Someone Every 6.6 Hours
Despite calls for change–not much really has changed when it comes to funding the police or holding them accountable. It seems we are back to business as usual—it doesn’t matter who is in the White House, or the Statehouse of California, for that matter.
Since 2019, California has poured more than $1.1 billion in support of police personnel and other public safety initiatives. And, In 2023, Newsom announced the largest investment on record to combat organized retail crime in CA history–a 310% increase.
Once again, Black lives and others, taken/stolen by police (at times indiscriminately) has quickly faded from memory when it comes to reassessing the funding and/or putting in the work needed to repair a broken police system in order to save lives.
The need to save Black and Brown lives seems to pale in comparison to the need to protect things–handbags, tennis shoes, shirts, watches, electronics, from being stolen from wealthy corporations that will probably write it all off the income taxes they already probably don’t pay much of anyway.
This retail theft was considered so egregious, the governor called a special legislative session to address it and requested the largest single investment to combat retail crime in history.
Since 2019, California has spent more than $1.1 billion “to fund resources” to fight crime. And as noted above, in 2023, the governor authorized a 310% increase to target retail crime and improve public safety.
I understand there are so many areas of concern that have risen to the top since the re-election of the once and future President Donald J. Trump, however, the issue of maltreatment of Black and Brown people by local police should never fall from our list of priorities. It is obvious the Democrats don’t have the courage to lead on this. Newsom continues to throw money at the police in a fashion similar to President Joe Biden and the police continue to kill.
Biden included $350 billion of COVID-relief funds for local police to “address rising violence”. In 2023, he authorized $45 million, and in 2024, another $40 million to support criminal justice and mental health systems.
The fact that Black Lives Matter is not something that should fall out of fashion. The issue of police funding is as relevant today as it was when George Floyd was strangled to death before our eyes in 2020.
Of course this is just my opinion. I’m keeping it real.
