Friday, August 31, 2012

Orange County's Dirty Public Safety Secret- Hate Crimes





Posted by CotoBlogzz

 It never ceases to amazes us how politicians always flock to get associated with the "safest city" nominations and or awards.  For example, the Orange County Sheriff's Department's blog will usually proudly post a press release announcing how happy the department is because a city like Mission Viejo is one the safest cities. 

Then there is the  Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) 2009 Uniform Crime Report indicates that the City of Rancho Santa Margarita is  the safest city in the State for cities with a population greater than 20,000 residents, marking the ninth consecutive year that the City of Rancho Santa Margarita has been identified as one of the safest communities in Orange County and the State.

Or what about Irvine being named the Safest City in Southern California.

Now, we continue to assert that whether a city is the safest city in the county -  the state or the nation -  or not is primarily a function of residents and local governance, not law enforcement. Take for instance the leadership demonstrated by the cities of Lake Forest and Mission Viejo: Lake Forest's ordinance issuing a 45-day moratorium on medical marijuana dispensaries in the city or the Mission Viejo City Council  pioneering work with underage drinking, being the county's first to pass the Social Host ordinance.  Certainly these two cases illustrate a more cost-efficient and proactive approach to public safety than say theAVOID program final 2009 Holiday results  which required three law enforcement agents  for every  arrest.  

What about the other 11 cities or the unincorporated areas?  What about Coto de Caza with the highest crime rate in history in early 2010.  After all, only common denominator is that the OCSD is the law enforcement agency.  What does the OCSD do differently in the safest city, as opposed to the least safe city under its watch?  The answer?  Nothing, Zilch, Nada, Nicht!
Newsflash:  Whether a city is the safest city in the county or not is primarily a function of residents and local governance, not law enforcement


Does anyone care that hate crimes in Orange County jumped 14 percent in 2011, according to the 20th annual report from OC Human Relations, released yesterday? According to Rusty Kennedy, executive director of OC Human Relations, last year, there were 64 documented hate crimes reported, up from 56 in 2010

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In 2009, 77 hate crimes were logged. There were 82 in 2008 and 101 in 2007.

Hate crimes involving religious bigotry were also up, according to the report. Eight of the 15 religious hate crimes targeted the Jewish community, seven were against Muslims and the rest involved Roman Catholics and Mormons.

However African American residents have been the main target of OC hate crimes going back to 2003. Although only 2 percent of Orange County residents are black, 30 percent of hate crimes last year targeted African Americans.  Just last week, vandals painted a swastika on the porch of a black family in Ladera Ranch, Kennedy said.

There were seven incidents involving Latinos, Kennedy said, adding that the commission believes Latino hate  crimes are under reported


"The Human Relations Commission has been issuing this report for 20 years, and I think for us, we want to say the county does not accept this type of hate," Kennedy said. "In this time of partisan politics there are the kinds of things that divide us, but one thing that brings us together is our stand against hate crimes."

Bridges,'' Kennedy said. ``Really, at its core, it's to fight hate and bigotry.

Our question is, where are the politicians taking credit for low crime rate in Southern California?  Where is Sheriff Hutchens?  Is hate crime against African American and Latinos a necessary evil?

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