Even Criminals Were Off Streets and Glued to TV

Many local police agencies are reporting a fall in crime since the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks, when hundreds of extra police officers took to the streets and people stayed home to watch television news of the assault.

The Los Angeles and Orange county sheriff’s departments and the LAPD, among other agencies, reported drops of 5% to 44% in violent and other serious offenses.

Although crime levels often fluctuate from week to week, officials said the declines over the last eight days were unusual. They attribute them to the almost natural reflex to a national crisis, one they also saw after the outbreak of the Gulf War a decade ago.

Last week, sheriff’s deputies said some of Los Angeles County’s toughest streets were taken over at night by crowds of mourners holding candles and waving American flags.

Many couples seemed to put aside their quarrels. In Huntington Beach, police normally receive half a dozen domestic violence reports daily, but haven’t gotten a call in days.

Los Angeles police recorded 434 burglaries last week, compared with 514 during the same period last year. And in Westminster, even hard-core gang members expressed remorse to officers about a brief skirmish Friday that took place yards from where crowds gathered for a candlelight vigil.

“I think even the criminals feel a sense of loss and patriotism too,” said Jim Amormino, spokesman for the Orange County Sheriff’s Department, which saw a 15% drop in crime reports. “Or maybe they’re just at home watching TV with everyone else.”

The Los Angeles Police Department, which has seen crime rise so far this year, reported a 5% drop in serious incidents during the last week, including a 17% decrease in rapes, 8% in larceny and 16% in burglary. The number of homicides in the city fell slightly from 14 a year ago to 13 last week.

“There is no doubt this is definitely a reversal. . . . Crime has been rising this year,” LAPD Lt. Horace Frank said. “This is not a fluke.”

Major crime took an even steeper dive in areas patrolled by the Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department, dropping by 44% compared with the previous week’s tally.

Deputies reported preliminary figures that showed robberies dropping from 96 to 52, and burglaries falling from 506 to 290.

Law enforcement officials acknowledged that the lull will probably be brief. But they also said they expect it to last at least a week or two longer as residents remain alert and on edge about terrorist attacks.

“Crime is going to go back up. No doubt. I’ve been in the business for 33 years,” said Alhambra Police Capt. David Skorheim, who has noticed a significant drop in his city. “People who make crime a living or need to support their dope habit aren’t about to change. They’ll be back at it.”

Not all cities are seeing a crime drop. In Hawthorne, a gang-related shooting the day after the terrorist attacks left six wounded.

But for the most part, police across the region reported drops in crime that were far larger than the usual fluctuations they see during the year. And even officials without crime data at their fingertips said they have noticed the streets quieter and people better behaved.

“It’s literally slowed down,” Huntington Beach Police Lt. Luis Ochoa said. “I think people have other things on their minds.”

But police officers didn’t. Agencies across the region declared tactical alerts, calling in extra officers and reassigning specialized units to work patrol.

In Los Angeles, police put hundreds more officers on the streets during the tactical alert, which lasted from Sept. 11 to Monday. And officials said that undoubtedly played a role in reducing crime.

“I don’t think that anyone would refute that a visible police presence in the field has an impact on crime,” said the LAPD’s Frank.

Other officials attributed the crime drops in large part to people being glued to television coverage of the terrorist attacks in New York and on the Pentagon, which left fewer potential victims and assailants on the streets.

Despite the fall in crime, police dispatchers found themselves flooded with 911 calls from worried residents reporting suspicious-looking people and packages.

The Orange County bomb squad usually handles five to 10 calls a week but has been summoned 35 times in the last week.

“It’s been quite busy,” said Sheriff’s Sgt. Randy Sterett, who supervises the squad. “We take every one of them seriously.”

So far, all of the calls have turned out to be false alarms, he said.

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Times staff writers Mai Tran, Stuart Pfeifer and Dalondo Moultrie contributed to this story.

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The Numbers by Category

The Los Angeles Police Department reported a 5% drop in major crimes in the week after the terrorist attacks compared with the same period in 2000:

Major Crime -5% Burglaries -16% Rapes -17% Stolen vehicles -4% Assaults +16% Larceny -8%

The Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department reported preliminary crime data that showed a 44% drop in major offenses in the week after Sept. 11 compared with the week before:

Major Crime -44% Burglaries -43% Rapes -59% Stolen vehicles -41% Assaults -47% Robberies -46%

Source: Los Angeles Police Department, Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department