SJ crime rate surging in 2026 even as regional and national crime trends plummet
So much for "safest big city." Two more people were shot to death in Central SJ last Thursday. The murder rate in the city is already up 50% compared to last year at this time. Various outlets report.
Naglee Park murders:
"Two men are dead after a shooting inside a commercial building east of downtown late Thursday, police said.
"The gunfire was reported at 10:11 p.m. in the 700 block of East Santa Clara Street, near South 15th Street in the city’s Naglee Park neighborhood, according to the San Jose Police Department.
"The deaths marked the fifth and sixth homicides of the year investigated by San Jose police; the city recorded four such homicides at the same point in 2025, according to data compiled by this news organization."--SJ Mercury
Read the whole thing here.
SJ Crime surge contrasts with national drop in crime
"Crime continued to decline in 2025, with homicides down 21% from 2024 and 44% from a peak in 2021, according to a new analysis of crime trends in 40 large U.S. cities released by the nonpartisan think tank Council on Criminal Justice.
"The national homicide rate could fall to its lowest level in more than a century.
"The Council on Criminal Justice study analyzed 13 types of offenses — from homicides to drug crimes to shoplifting — in cities that have consistently published monthly data over the past eight years. Researchers found that 11 of the 13 offenses were lower in 2025 than in 2024, with nine dropping by 10% or more.
"Drug offenses were the only category to rise, while sexual assaults remained unchanged.
"Carjackings and shoplifting also declined sharply. Reported carjackings fell 61% from 2023, while reported shoplifting dropped 10% from 2024.
"Among the 35 cities reporting homicides, nearly all recorded declines. Denver; Omaha, Nebraska; and Washington, D.C., saw homicide rates drop roughly 40%.
"There were some modest increases, including in Little Rock, Arkansas; Fort Worth, Texas; and Milwaukee, Wisconsin. The homicide rate in El Paso, Texas, remained flat. Overall, 922 fewer homicides were reported across the cities in the sample."--Stateline.org
Read the whole thing here.
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