Residents and visitors should be aware that crime rates in our community are quite high.  Police statistics show that major violent and nonviolent crime in Mission Beach consistently runs 2-3 times the San Diego city average per 1000 residents, and a lot higher than Pacific Beach next door or Ocean Beach, our neighbor to the south.

We get, proportionately, a lot more visitors than the other beach communities, and this can’t  help but increase the incidence of crime.

REPORTING CRIME

It’s vital that every observed crime be reported, even if the perpetrator is gone when the crime is discovered.

There are two reasons for this, (1) Crime patterns are tracked and it helps the police to zero in on professional criminals, and (2) Police staffing is dictated by calls for service, and crime reports normally are  service calls.  In other words,  the more crimes you report, the more police are going to be assigned to protect your neighborhood.

9-1-1, the nationwide emergency number, is used to report crimes in progress, fires and medical emergencies.

(619) 531-2000 or (858) 484-3154 are used for non-life threatening situations and to report crimes that have already taken place.

Either of these numbers can be programmed into your home phone or cell phone, and will give you rapid access to police dispatchers.  You may have to wait on “hold” for a short time, but be patient and ask that your report be given an incident number. Now the crime is a matter of record.

If in doubt, call 911.  The dispatcher will prioritize your call and transfer it if  necessary.

WHAT ABOUT CRIME STATISTICS?

If you want reports on crime in your immediate area, you have two choices, both available  on the internet.  The E Watch Network,  http://apps.sandiedo.gov/ewatch, will automatically send you Email reports of crimes you select in an area you define, shortly after they are reported to the police.

ARJIS, a regional crime reporting system, has both summary and detailed reports.  Their statistics cover several years and can be sorted by “neighborhood”, which gives you all of Mission  Beach.  Go to http://www.arjis.org.