FBI: Violent Crime in Oakland Rises by Almost 20% in 2012

Violent crime rose in the Bay Area in 2012, according to data released by the FBI, and Oakland topped the list for Northern California.

Oakland's statistics for murder, rape, robbery and aggravated assault from January to December 2012 show an increase of 19.6 percent over 2011 — a total of 7,962 violent crimes in 2012 compared to 6,652 the previous year.

In California, only Los Angeles — with roughly 10 times the population of Oakland — reported more violent crimes in 2012.

Of Oakland's violent crimes in 2012, 126 were classified as murders. None of those occurred in Rockridge; the closest was the shooting death of Lorenzo Ward in the 800 block of 53rd Street (close to Martin luther King Jr. Way) on Sept. 1, 2012, according to a report published by the Bay Area News Group.

Oakland's largest category of violent crime was robbery, with 4,338 robberies reported in 2012, a 20 percent increase over the previous year. (Both armed and strong-arm robberies are included in this category.)

Oakland experienced a similar steep increase in property crimes in 2012, the FBI report shows.

Nationally, law enforcement agencies reported a 1.2 percent increase in violent crimes. The western region of the United States experienced the steepest rise in violent crime, the FBI reports.

The 2012 Preliminary Annual Uniform Crime Report compares violent crime rates in 2012 to 2011 in U.S. cities with populations of 100,000 or more. The full report will be released in the fall and include smaller cities.

Here is the breakdown of Oakland crime as reported by the Oakland Police Department to the FBI.

VIOLENT CRIME (total): 2012 - 7,962. 2011 - 6,642.

Murder:
2012 - 126.
2011 - 104.

Forcible rape:
2012 - 271.
2011 - 202

Robbery:
2012 - 4,338.
2011 - 3,365,

Aggravated assault:
2012 - 3,227.
2011 - 2,981.

PROPERTY CRIME (total):
2012 - 26,342.
2011 - 20,904.

Burglary:
2012 - 6,168.
2011 - 5,170.

Larceny-theft:
2012 - 13,198.
2011 - 9,429.

Motor vehicle theft:
2012 - 6,976.
2011 - 6305.

Arson: 
2012 - 188.
2011 - 138.