Unsafer, still
The upsurge in violence in San Jose isn't just focused on donwntown's curiously-named "Entertainment Zones," which have attracted shootings, stabbings, and unruly crowds requiring police intervention. Domestic violence deaths in SJ are also tracking much higher than 2025, according to San Jose Inside.
{From San Jose Inside} A San Jose man released after an arrest for stalking and threatening his estranged wife in March returned to her home last week and stabbed her to death, prosecutors said.
Four days later, on June 15, police arrested another San Jose man, Shede Mao, 55, after he used a machete to kill his estranged wife.
The murders were the third and fourth domestic violence homicides so far this year in San Jose. There were five domestic violence murders in Santa Clara County during all of 2025.
--San Jose Inside
More shooting deaths downtown, as well
{From KCBS} One man died after a shooting in downtown San Jose that left three men injured, police said on Monday.
At around 2:19 am Sunday, San José Police Department officers responded to a shooting at the corner of South First Street and East Reed Street, authorities said.
When police arrived, they found three adult male victims, each with at least one gunshot wound. Police said that their early investigations concluded that the victims were driving in the area when one or more unknown people fired multiple gunshots into their car.
All three victims were transported to local hospitals for treatment, where one of the victims died from his injuries.
--KCBS
{Editor's note: AI says: As of late June 2026, the San José Police Department has investigated at least 22 homicides, compared to 14 homicides recorded in the city at the same point in 2025. The city experienced a more than 50% increase in murders year-over-year in its first quarter.}
Follow Opportunity Now on Twitter @svopportunity
We prize letters from our thoughtful readers. Typed on a Smith Corona. Written in longhand on fine stationery. Scribbled on a napkin. Hey, even composed on email. Feel free to send your comments to us at opportunitynowsv@gmail.com or (snail mail) 1590 Calaveras Ave., SJ, CA 95126. Remember to be thoughtful and polite. We will post letters on an irregular basis on the main Opp Now site.