(The Center Square) — Gov. Gavin Newsom continues to bash President Donald Trump’s initiatives to enhance public safety, claiming California saw lower crime rates in 2024 without the deployment of the U.S. military.
The state Department of Justice released the Crime in California 2024 report on July 1, showing crime went down in nearly every category in 2024:
• Violent crime rate decreased 6%.
• Property crime rate went down 8.4%.
• Homicide rate fell 10.4%.
• Aggravated assault decreased 6.5%.
• Motor vehicle theft rate fell 15.2%.
• Burglary rate decreased 9.1%.
• Robbery rate decreased 6.3%.
Newsom referenced the crime report in a press release Tuesday, the second day of a three-day trial in California’s lawsuit against the Trump administration on the president’s deployment of the National Guard in Los Angeles in June. The trial took place this week in the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of California.
“His authoritarian orders aren’t about safety – they’re an attack on the very foundation of our nation and a slap in the face to democracy,” Newsom said.
Despite seeing crime decrease in many categories, the report showed crime increased in arson and reported rapes.
Arson went up 9.9% from 17.2 cases per 100,000 people in 2023 to 18.9 cases per 100,000 people in 2024.
Reports of rapes also showed an increase in 2024, going from 13,273 crimes in 2023 to 13,874 in 2024. That’s a 4.8% increase.
California Attorney General Rob Bonta said in a press release July 1 that the crime report showed good news, but the state still has more room to improve public safety.
“While crime rates have declined over the past year, public safety in our communities remains priorities one, two and three,” Bonta said. “I encourage local partners and law enforcement to review this data and recommit to taking action.”
