California’s violent and property crime rates declined sharply in 2024, marking the first statewide decrease in violent crime since the COVID-19 pandemic, according to a new report from the Public Policy Institute of California (PPIC).
The report found that California’s overall violent crime rate fell 5.3% in 2024, dropping from 508 crimes per 100,000 residents in 2023 to 481. Despite the improvement, violent crime remains 9.8% higher than in 2019, reflecting a sustained increase that followed the pandemic.
Several major violent crime categories saw notable declines. Homicides decreased by 13.5% in 2024, while reported rapes fell 1.2%. Robberies dropped 7.5%, and aggravated assaults declined 4.8%. Even with the year-over-year reduction, aggravated assaults remain 22% above pre-pandemic levels, highlighting uneven recovery across crime types.
The report notes that California’s violent crime trends follow long-term historical patterns. After peaking in the early 1990s, violent crime fell steadily for two decades, reaching a 50-year low in 2014. Rates then began rising again in the late 2010s before surging during the pandemic years.
Property crime also declined significantly in 2024. The statewide property crime rate fell 9.9% to 2,084 incidents per 100,000 residents, the lowest level recorded since 1985. Larceny thefts and burglaries dropped 7.1% and 11.8%, respectively, and both are now well below their 2019 levels.
Auto theft declined 16.7% in 2024 but remains 19.3% higher than before the pandemic. Shoplifting continued to rise, increasing 14.2% last year and standing 48% above its 2019 rate. Theft of car accessories, including catalytic converters, fell 27%, marking the second consecutive decline since 2020.
Crime trends varied widely by region. The lowest violent crime rates were reported along California’s southern coast and border counties, while the San Joaquin Valley recorded the highest violent crime rate. Property crime was lowest in the Sierra region and highest in the San Francisco Bay Area.
Most of California’s 58 counties saw declines in both violent and property crime in 2024, including the majority of the state’s largest counties, signaling broad but uneven improvements in public safety statewide.
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Bo Tefu contributed to this report.
