California Attorney General Rob Bonta announced the release of several annual criminal justice statistical reports for 2023. The reports, which include Homicide in California, Crime in California, Use of Force Incident Reporting, Juvenile Justice in California, and Crime Guns in California, provide comprehensive data submitted by law enforcement agencies and other criminal justice entities across the state.
"The data released today is essential for understanding, preventing, and combating crime. I encourage local partners and law enforcement to review the data and recommit to taking action," said Attorney General Bonta. "We must continue to act to combat crime and keep our communities safe."
The reports serve as vital resources for policymakers, researchers, law enforcement personnel, and the public by offering detailed statewide information on various aspects of criminal justice. This year's statistics reflect a combination of data collected through both the legacy system and the new California Incident-Based Reporting System (CIBRS), which aims to provide more detailed information about specific incidents.
Key findings from each report include:
**Homicide in California 2023**
- The homicide rate decreased by 15.8% from 5.7 per 100,000 people in 2022 to 4.8 per 100,000 in 2023.
- Firearms were used in 72.8% of homicides where the weapon was identified.
- Victims were most often killed by friends or acquaintances (48.7%), followed by strangers (29.5%), and family members (14.8%).
- There were 1,374 arrests for homicide in 2023, a decrease of 7.5% from the previous year.
**Crime in California 2023**
- The violent crime rate increased by 3.3%, while property crime rates decreased by 1.8%.
- The total arrest rate increased by 3%.
- Full-time criminal justice personnel numbers saw a slight increase of 0.6%.
**Use of Force Incident Reporting**
- Involved incidents totaled at least one use of force resulting in serious bodily injury or death.
- Of civilians involved:
- Hispanic: 48.5%
- White: 26%
- Black:18%
Of officers involved:
- Not injured:83%
- Injured:16%
**Juvenile Justice in California**
- Law enforcement referred half of juvenile cases directly to probation departments.
- Felony offenses accounted for just over half (50%)of juvenile arrests
**Crime Guns Report**
Recovered firearms with serial numbers totaled approximately137k unique guns between21'and23'.While36k additional weapons lacked identifiable serial numbers.Among those serialized guns entered into AFS(Automated Firearm System)around34k could be traced backto1597distinct CA firearm dealers
Attorney General Bonta emphasized that accurate statistics are crucial for making informed decisions regarding public safety policies."Accurate statistics &the data provided help calibrate our response ensuring policymakers&law enforcement can make informed decisions"
The full reports along with underlying datasets are available on OpenJustice's website
###