Violent Crimes Plummet

Officer assaults increased by 267 percent in Menlo Park this year, according to crime statistics released by the Menlo Park Police Department. But viewing this information on a 21-year year timeline, violent crimes have been cut almost in half, according to data from the U.S. Department of Justice.

Eleven Menlo Park police officers were assaulted in 2011, a number reached only once more in the department this past decade. Only in 2002 had that many police officers reported being assaulted. Last year, the number was three. 

The police department is required to report these statistics to the U.S. Department of Justice annually, although “officer assaults” is not one of the quantifiable offense definitions provided by its online database. The U.S.D.O.J. lumps all violent crimes together.

The big picture:

Menlo Park is about on par for violent incidents with cities nearby that also house between 25,000 and 49,000 people. The most recent available data for East Palo Alto and Pacifica are from 2009.

The U.S. D.O.J. reports that Menlo Park had 69 violent crimes, which is 15 more than what was reported in Pacifica. The U.S D.O.J. lumps homicide, rape, robbery, and aggravated assaults into the category of “violent crimes.” East Palo Alto had almost five times as many incidents, clocking in at 396.

This is a significant decrease from earlier decades.

In 1990, Menlo Park Police reported 163 violent crimes, while Pacifica Police had 91 and East Palo Alto Police recorded 474.

In 2000, Menlo Park recorded 63 violent crimes; Pacifica reported 109; East Palo Alto had 287.  

Menlo Park police handled 895 crimes in 2000; the department handled 802 this year.