California Highway Patrol dispatched to help crime-plagued San Bernardino

SAN BERNARDINO, Calif. – The California Highway Patrol is stepping in to help combat property thefts, shootings and more in San Bernardino, where violent crime rates are about twice the state average.

The CHP augmentation operation will add law enforcement units on the ground and in the air to help San Bernardino police combat side shows, stolen vehicles, phantom weapons and street gangs, Gov. Gavin Newsom said Monday in announcing starting the program. The partnership aims to strengthen public safety in one of the most crime-ridden cities in California.

The estimated violent crime rate for the city of San Bernardino in 2023 was 1,059 crimes per 100,000 residents, approximately twice the California average of 511 crimes per 100,000 residents. San Bernardino Police Department, US Census and condition Department of Justice.

The city’s estimated homicide rate for 2023 was 16.2 per 100,000 residents – more than three times the California average of 4.8 per 100,000 residents.

And while these numbers are scary, they represent a noticeable improvement compared to 2022.

San Bernardino, without the CHP, has already seen year-over-year declines in violent crime and homicide rates, which are down 11% and 50%, respectively, as of 2023. SBPD data. Still, city officials welcome the strengthened enforcement, and CHP Commissioner Sean Duryee said the partnership will strengthen ongoing efforts to improve public safety.

“This collaboration allows us to share resources, intelligence and expertise, increasing our ability to reduce crime and create a safer environment for all community members,” Duryee said in a statement. No information was available on how many CHP officers would be deployed to San Bernardino.

Newsom has already launched CHP operations in several other crime hot spots, including Oakland, San Francisco and Bakersfield. Collectively, these operations resulted in over 3,200 arrests, the recovery of almost 3,000 stolen vehicles and the confiscation of over 170 illegal firearms.

In San Bernardino, the operation will help fight ghost weapons, which are illegal firearms that have no serial numbers and that are difficult for law enforcement to link to crimes or owners.

Last year, more than 4,700 ghost guns were seized in San Bernardino County, more than in any other California county except Los Angeles.

San Bernardino Mayor Helen Tran said she is grateful for the CHP’s support, which has helped the city continue to reduce crime rates and stop criminal enterprises that target neighborhoods and businesses.

This story originally appeared on Los Angeles Times.