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INTRODUCTION

The number of homicides committed in Oakland decreased substantially between 2003 and 2004. The decline has been attributed, in part, to the Oakland Police Department’s Violence Reduction Plan launched in October 2003, greater collaboration between local and state law enforcement agencies, and increased community involvement in violence prevention activities.

This report summarizes changes in specific characteristics of homicides over the past three years, such as victim and suspect demographic characteristics, locations of the crimes, the parole/probation status of victims and suspects, and the time of day and month that the homicides were committed. In addition to presenting annual data for 2002, 2003, and 2004, the tables and figures in this report show how characteristics of the homicides changed from year to year and over the three-year period.

MOST COMMON CHARACTERISTICS OF 2004 OAKLAND HOMICIDES

The table below summarizes the most common characteristics of Oakland homicides in 2004. The reader should note that these characteristics do not describe all—and in some cases not even the majority—of Oakland homicides.

Table A. Most Common Characteristics of Oakland Homicides, 2004