Salinas homicide rate shows dramatic decline

SALINAS, Calif. (KION) Police are still putting together the pieces of a shooting in Salinas, Thursday night. Officers found a 27-year-old man on Garner Avenue with a deadly gun shot wound. 

The incident marks the 10th homicide in Salinas this year, but the numbers show a city drastically improving safety. The annual homicide count has drooped by 75%, after a high of 40 incidents in 2015.

"There's crime in every town, but I've noticed that it has decreased,” said Salinas resident, Eddie Muniz. 

Muniz said he has lived in Salinas all his life. He, and others, said they have seem a significant cut in crime across the board. Aggravated assault is also at its lowest level since 2014.

“It was pretty bad back then when I was living on the east side of Salinas. As I got older it wasn't as bad,” said Salinas resident, Jose Flores.

Salinas Police Chief, Adele Frese, said the department has worked hard to drive down crime. She said they have allocated more resources like the Violence Suppression Task Force (VSTF). 

"We've sought out every possible resource available that we can apply to for assistance, or partner with. in terms of human resources. This is so we can have the law enforcement boots on the ground, focused on negating the gang violence challenge that we've had for several years,” said Frese.

Last night, neighbors were the first to call 911 after gun shots rang out. It is acts like this that police said they are counting on to continue on the right path. 

"They help us solve cases. People are stepping forward. I think our community realizes that we can build an even safer community, with less violent crime. We can have prosperity if we work together,” said Frese.