Homicides soar in Oakland, vanish in East Palo Alto

Amy Larson
·1 min read
133

SAN FRANCISCO (KRON) — A San Francisco Bay Area city that was once known as the “murder capital” of the United States reached a remarkable milestone in 2023. For the first time in the city’s history, East Palo Alto had zero homicides last year.

An opposite crime trend plagued Oakland neighborhoods throughout 2023. One-hundred-twenty-six people were slain in Oakland, including a police officer who was gunned down in the line of duty two days before New Year’s Eve.

The Bay’s two most populated cities, San Francisco and San Jose, had 53 and 36 homicides, respectively.

2023 Homicides

  • Oakland – 126

  • San Francisco – 53

  • San Jose – 36

  • East Palo Alto – 0

East Palo Alto city leaders weighed in on possible reasons why public safety has strengthened.

“This is a direct result from astute decision-making,” East Palo Alto Mayor Antonio Lopez said. “In 2023, the Council voted to increase police pay and budget after the City endured significant staff turnover. I am grateful to the leadership of City Manager Melvin Gaines and Chief of Police Jeff Liu, both long-time public servants for the city who, in their first years under their new roles, have delivered.”

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Lopez was born in East Palo Alto and remembers how dangerous it was growing up. “Words can’t describe how emotional it is for me,” Lopez said of homicides falling to zero.

“Not only did we install cameras in our parks, increase our rate for officers, we also collaborated with the churches,” Lopez said.

Martha Barragán, East Palo Alto Vice Mayor, added, “Our churches have banded together in prayer in the parks. This is the result of unity and organizing. Our community has worked tirelessly in achieving this feat, one of them being neighborhood policing.”

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