Friday, August 31, 2007

Crime Wave!

At least 3 dead, and 5 shot in 12 hours in SF:

Thursday:

- 9:20 p.m.: shooting at Taylor and Market Streets in the tenderloin wounds one man, hitting him in the arm.

- 10:00 p.m.: man shot 4 times in Sunnydale, once in each arm and twice in the chest. His injuries are considered non life-threatening.

- 11:00 p.m.: Man found o the ground with a gunshot wound to his back in Hunters Point. His injuries are also non life-threatening.

And here comes Friday:

- 2 a.m.: man stabbed to death at UN Plaza in Civic Center near McAllister Street.

- 9:40 a.m.: man shot three times in drive-by at Steiner and Fulton Streets in the Western Addition. His wounds are not life-threatening. Supervisor Ross Mirkarimi was jogging at the time, and helped police catch the suspects.

- According to a guest on Sfist: A teenager was shot in the head and run over with a car this morning in the Western Addition, behind Ella Hill Hutch Community Center. No word yet from the news on that.

- 2 people were found slain in a home in Ingleside Heights.

Thursday night violence leaves 1 dead, 3 wounded

Homicide Follows Violent Night In San Francisco
CBS 5 CrimeWatch

(BCN) SAN FRANCISCO An early morning stabbing in San Francisco's Tenderloin neighborhood that claimed the life of one man followed an evening of heavy violence in the city, according to the San Francisco Police Department.

On Thursday night, officers responded to three separate shootings that occurred in different parts of the city and sent three men to San Francisco General Hospital with non-life threatening injuries, police said.

The first shooting occurred in the 100 block of Taylor Street in the Tenderloin at around 9:20 p.m., according to a police dispatcher. Police said a 31-year-old man was found with a gunshot wound to his arm.

At 10:06 p.m. police responded to reports of shots fired in the 1800 block of Sunnydale Avenue in the Visitacion Valley neighborhood, the dispatcher said. Police located a 29-year-old man who had been shot four times, once in each arm and twice in his chest. The man was transported to the hospital with what appeared to be non-life threatening injuries, according to police.

About an hour later, at 11:10 p.m., police responded to a third shooting in the 1700 block of McKinnon Avenue in the city's Bayview District, police said. Officers found a 20-year-old man who had been shot once in the back. The victim was taken to the hospital with non-life threatening injuries, according to the dispatcher.

Then, early this morning, officers responded to a fatal stabbing at around 2:10 a.m. in the unit block of McAllister St., just one block from University of California's Hastings College of Law, police said.

The victim, a male in his 20s, was stabbed multiple times and pronounced dead at the scene, according to police.
No arrests have been made and police are investigating the crimes.

Link

Thursday, August 30, 2007

San Francisco has some of the worst public housing projects in the nation

The Hunters View projects in Hunters Point are the worst, with a score of 26 out of 100, followed by Sunnydale, with a score of 46 out of 100. A score of 60 is considered "satisfactory."

Problems such as mold, mildew, malfunctioning appliances, sewage problems, lack of sewer and drain covers, broken glass, cockroaches, potholes, burnt-out trash cans, missing smoke-detectors, and bullet holes are rampant.

The regional HUD director says: "It's among the lowest scores I have ever seen."

Monday, August 27, 2007

Teenage boy shot in Visitacion Valley

16-year-old boy shot in SF
Wyatt Buchanan, Chronicle Staff Writer

Monday, August 27, 2007

(08-27) 19:11 PDT San Francisco -- A 16-year-old male was shot three times Monday afternoon on San Bruno Avenue in San Francisco.

The incident happened just after 4 p.m. when someone ran up to the victim on the street and shot him in the side and the back, said Sgt. Neville Gittens, spokesman for the San Francisco Police Department. The victim was taken to San Francisco General Hospital where he underwent surgery Monday evening.

Police do not have a description of the suspect, who got into a waiting vehicle that was driven by another person. The police department's gang task force is investigating the incident, Gittens said.

Chronicle homicide count, gang murder numbers

According to the Chronicle, there have been 70 murders (as opposed to my count of 71, though they NEVER mentioned the killing of Sung Park...maybe that explains it...then again, it might not...read on.).

I don't know what murders they have included in their total however, or if the recent hit and runs should put my count up to 73. It's unknown (to me anyways) whether those have been ruled murder, or vehicular manslaughter. Uuntil recently, the Chronicle's count was 68. After the two hit and runs, it rose to 70, though there's been no specific mention of the deaths being ruled as murders. It could be that some previous suspicious deaths were recently considered to be murder. Unfortunately, I have no way of knowing these things for sure... Anyone have an Idea? Or better yet, specific information?


Also, apparently, only 11 of the homicides so far this year have been attributed to gang warfare by the SFPD.

One violent neighborhood, 2 children, 2 trajectories

Jill Tucker, Chronicle Staff Writer

Sunday, August 26, 2007


They were words that should never have come out of a child's mouth.

Brandon Oloa, 14, said them without emotion.

"I think my sister was in the way when they were shooting, and she got hit," he said of the seemingly random shooting. "I think she took the bullet for my mom."

Complete Article

Friday, August 24, 2007

Fatal traffic accidents rise sharply - Police crack down on drivers

34 people have died from traffic collisions in San Francisco so far this year, including 3 last week. In all of 2006, there were 28 fatalities, and 26 in all of 2005. 22 of those so far this year were pedestrians, up from 12 pedestrians for the entire year of '06.

Sunday, August 19, 2007

Man Shot Dead in the Excelsior

San Francisco
Man steps outside home, is fatally shot
Tyche Hendricks

Monday, August 20, 2007

A San Francisco man was shot and killed early Sunday as he stepped out of an Excelsior district home, police said.

Carlos Cruz, 25, died at San Francisco General Hospital, according to the San Francisco medical examiner. He had been leaving a home in the 400 block of Persia Avenue when two people approached him and one opened fire, hitting him several times, San Francisco police Sgt. Neville Gittens said.

Two Fatal Hit and Runs Within 20 Minutes

SAN FRANCISCO
2 pedestrians killed by hit-run drivers
Demian Bulwa

Monday, August 20, 2007

Police are seeking two hit-and-run drivers after separate late-night crashes this weekend in San Francisco killed two pedestrians - a Canadian navy lieutenant on shore leave and a retired American Automobile Association inspector who was struck near his Castro neighborhood home.

Just before 2 a.m. Saturday, police said, a silver or gray Mercedes-Benz traveling south on the Embarcadero at Howard Street struck Mark Ashley, a 27-year-old Toronto resident who was assigned to the Canadian guided-missile frigate Calgary, which had arrived Friday.

At 1:30 a.m. Sunday, Roger Tennyson, 77, had just parked his Toyota RAV4 outside his home on the 100 block of Sanchez Street and had emerged from the vehicle when he was struck by a driver who fled. No description of the vehicle was released.

Police spokesman Sgt. Neville Gittens said investigators were still working on a description of the vehicle.

Friday, August 17, 2007

Man shot to death in Hunters Point Friday Morning

An unidentified male was shot dead in broad daylight this morning in San Francisco's Bayview District, just blocks from Monster Park, according to police.

Neighbors called police just before 7 a.m. reporting hearing a gunshot in the area of Nichols and Cameron ways, Sgt. Steve Mannina said.

Officers found a male victim lying on the sidewalk, according to Mannina. Paramedics pronounced him dead at the scene.

No one was able to provide a description of the suspect or suspects, and police are still attempting to interview witnesses, Mannina said.

Anyone with information is asked to call the Police Department's confidential tip line at (415) 575-4444.


Check out the video posted with the article, If you want a good overview of the crime scene.

Man Shot to Death in Hunters Point

SAN FRANCISCO /35-year-old man shot to death in Bayview
Marisa Lagos

Friday, August 17, 2007

A 35-year-old San Francisco man was shot and killed Wednesday night in the Bayview district, police said today.

Darski Alexander was shot around 6:45 p.m. by a man in his 20s, police Sgt. Steve Mannina said. No arrests have been made.

Alexander was standing near the corner of Innes Avenue and Mendell Street when he was shot, Mannina said. He was taken to San Francisco General Hospital, where he was pronounced dead.

Tuesday, August 14, 2007

Crime Cameras not Helping

Apparently, the 178 video cameras that were recently installed in San Francisco housing projects have yet to help in any homicide investigations.

Monday, August 13, 2007

CA Attorney General's car broken into in SF...In front of City Hall

Californa attorney general Jerry Brown had his car broken into in San Francisco the other day. It happened in broad daylight, across the street from City Hall. Crack kills. It gets your GPS unit stolen too.

Anyways, apparently last year there was an average of 43 car break ins a day in SF. Supposedly, there are now just 32 break-ins a day. But, there is also the fact that many people don't report break-ins at all, especially people who've already had their car broken into in the past. Plus, unless it's important for your insurance, the police may tell you not to report it.

Saturday, August 11, 2007

Two Critically Injured in Tenderloin Shootings

(BCN) SAN FRANCISCO Two victims are battling life-threatening gunshot wounds after what may have been related attacks about a block apart in San Francisco's Tenderloin District Friday evening.

A San Francisco Police Department inspector said officers patrolling in the neighborhood heard gunshots around 6:30 p.m. in the vicinity of Olive and Larkin streets.

The victims were found less than a block apart. One was shot in the face and the back; the other was shot in the chest and back, the inspector said. They were being treated at an area hospital with wounds considered life-threatening, she said.

There were no suspects so far in the police inquiry, the inspector said.

Article

S.F. mayor, police chief, others call for gun-show ban at Cow Palace

Their reasoning is that the surrounding neighborhoods are plagued with violence, and a gun show possibly adds to the number of firearms going around, and that it's just plain insensitive to have such an event in such an area. 142 murders, or 43 percent of SF's murders since 2004, have happened in the Bayview and Ingleside districts which border the Cow Palace.

Article

Thursday, August 9, 2007

Murder Rate still up in SF

There have been 68 murders in San Francisco as of August 9th. In addition, there have been 3 justifiable homicides (one a self defense shooting, two more were police shootings), and at least a few "suspicious" deaths. The murder total is up from 52 at the same time last year, a 24% increase. It's also around 30% higher than the total for the same time in 2005


Meanwhile, elsewhere in the Bay Area:

Oakland is at 79 murders, possibly 80 now, with a spate of 8 murders between August 2nd and 6th. It's at exactly the same number now as it was for the same time last year.

San Jose is at 20, I believe.

Wednesday, August 8, 2007

Three Men Honored For Saving Teenage Girl's Life

A few months ago, a 14 year-old girl was randomly and savagely attacked by a crazed parolee who had just been released. He wanted to kill someone, but did not have enough money to make it from San Quentin to his native LA. So he went to San Francisco instead, entered Creighton's Bakery near Twin Peaks, and repeatedly stabbed a girl who happened to be in the wrong place at the wrong time. Had it not been for the quick actions of three complete strangers, she would certainly be dead.

Tuesday, August 7, 2007

SF Homicides up 20 Percent

An old article, but the site has to start somewhere:

There have been 54 slayings as of July 11th, up from 45 at the same time last year.

I have 58 murders listed as of July 11th. The Chronicle has been known to be wrong though, and some murders aren't reported at all, such as Sung Park (Homicide #13), a Korean student who was murdered Feb. 4th, during a street fight outside a club on Harrison Street. Nothing on SFgate, though the SFPD had a crime bulletin posted on their website, asking for information leading to Park's killer.