Richmond: Crime down in 2014, homicides reach yet another low
By Robert Rogers, Rick Hurd and Phil James rrogers@bayareanewsgroup.com
Posted:   01/01/2015 06:30:00 AM PST Updated:   2 days ago
RICHMOND -- Another year, another multi-decade low in homicides for a city that once held the notorious distinction of being among the nation's most violent.
As of 6 p.m. Dec. 31, 11 criminal homicides had been recorded in Richmond in 2014, not including three killings that were deemed self-defense, making it the lowest total on record dating to 1971. The total also was down from 16 in 2013 and a far cry from the recorded high of 62 in 1990.
To hear police tell it, that's not only a positive trend but more affirmation that community policing can yield significant results.
"What I believe in my heart," Richmond police Capt. Mark Gagan said, "is that we have an above-average involvement in the community."

A group of Antioch police officers stand around the body of a 32-year-old male after a drive-by shooting in the parking lot outside the 24 Hour Fitness at the Somersville Towne Center in Antioch, Calif., on Thursday, Nov. 6, 2014. (DAN ROSENSTRAUCH)
Richmond's success stood out in a county where homicides overall were slightly more frequent -- 49 were recorded in 2014, up from 46 in 2013 -- but where another high-crime city seemed to make some inroads. Antioch recorded only nine homicides -- the most recent being the shooting death of 23-year-old Pittsburg resident Ricardo Walff Jr. on Dec. 21 -- a total that ranks as a three-year low.
"I see the city moving in a positive direction," Antioch police Lt. Tony Morefield said. "We've worked hard to provide more of a presence, we've been aggressive in hiring new officers, and we've been proactive in areas that in the past have proven to be dangerous. It's hard to measure how much of an effect it's had, but certainly, it has had some."
After seeing seven homicides between April 8 and Aug. 30, Antioch police stepped up tactics such as arrest warrant checks and placing a heavier focus on weapons, gangs and illegal drug activity -- and the results seemed to be prove they've been effective. The city recorded only two homicides in the final four months of the year.
"It's a good trend," Morefield said. "Hopefully, it stays that way for a while."
Homicides went in the other direction in Concord, where the fatal shooting of an 18-year-old man April 17 ended a yearlong stretch without a homicide in that city and was the first of five recorded in 2014, the highest number since 2011. The total was enhanced because two of the victims died in a head-on car crash resulting in murder charges against one of the drivers (Concord police Chief Guy Swanger said the department does not record such vehicular deaths as homicides). ¿The city recorded only one homicide in 2012 and 2013 combined.
Such a total is what police in Richmond dream about, but community policing there seems to have curtailed much of the deadly street violence the city endured for decades. As recently as 2009, the city recorded 47 homicides.
Part of Richmond's homicide total this year can be chalked up to luck, because there were spates of violence in the city in which multiple people survived bullet wounds. But its homicide rate per capita is the lowest in the city's recorded history.
Weekly street killings, once the norm here, are the exception now. Three killings this year are classified as justifiable homicides in which homeowners shot and killed suspected burglars. Police Chief Chris Magnus pointed out that those three won't count in the city's criminal homicide total reported to the FBI because they were not criminal acts.
Another two were domestic disputes, including a July 8 homicide in the upscale Point Richmond neighborhood.
The 11 homicides -- one fewer than the previous recorded low in 1973 -- included nine that were the result of street violence over turf and other disputes. Those homicides, mostly drive-by shootings, were concentrated in the city's central and southern districts.
The city's population is more than 30 percent higher than it was in the early 1970s, according to U.S. Census data. In addition to Richmond's 11 homicides this year, the city recorded its first fatal officer-involved shooting since 2007.
Overall violent crime in the city also was down about 13 percent as of Dec. 1 when compared with the same period last year, and property crime was down 16 percent.
At the annual community memorial for homicide victims she hosted in early December, Mayor Gayle McLaughlin said the city's strides in public safety were improving Richmond's image.
"That old reputation is dying off," McLaughlin said.
McLaughlin also credited the city's continued support of the Office of Neighborhood Safety, a small department that focuses on mentorship and providing other services to young men and boys previously involved in gang violence.
Devone Boggan, director of ONS, said the city's youths deserve some credit.
"Young men who are typically traditionally historically responsible for gun violence in this city are making better decisions about how they negotiate everyday conflicts that have traditionally led to further gun violence," he said.
Contact Robert Rogers at 510-262-2726 and follow him at Twitter.com/sfbaynewsrogers. Contact Rick Hurd at 925-945-4789 and follow him at Twitter.com/3rderh. Phil James is a reporter for Richmond Confidential, an online news service produced by the UC Berkeley Graduate School of Journalism.
richmond homicides