In late July, San Diego police reported a fatal stabbing in Lincoln Park that put the city’s murder count above the total for all of 2010. The city’s most acclaimed crime drop came to an end.

But a new report by the San Diego Association of Governments shows that sobering trend isn’t unique to San Diego. During the first half of the year, the number of murders across the region increased outside of the city, too.

Police in Chula Vista, Oceanside and Carlsbad reported a combined total of one murder during the first half of last year and 12 murders during the same period this year. Combined with the increase in San Diego and small changes elsewhere, the countywide murder count climbed from 31 to 51.

The rise in murders is especially stark against the continued drop of other major violent crimes like robbery and serious property crimes like burglary. Countywide, violent crime dropped by 8 percent and property crime fell by 11 percent from the same period last year.

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Among 41 murders this year where investigators had determined the motive, they attributed more to gangs and child abuse than last year, according to the report. In May, San Diego police announced that gang crime was spiking around southeastern San Diego neighborhoods.

To view Sandag’s report, which includes crime statistics for each jurisdiction in the county, click here. To search an online database of neighborhood-level crime statistics, click here. If you find something interesting in the data, be sure to let me know.

Correction: A previous version of this story incorrectly described drops in violent crime and property crime from last year. It has been updated. We regret the error.

Keegan Kyle is a news reporter for voiceofsandiego.org. He writes about public safety and handles the Fact Check Blog. What should he write about next?

Please contact him directly at keegan.kyle@voiceofsandiego.org or 619.550.5668. You can also find him on Twitter (@keegankyle) and Facebook.

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