MODESTO, Calif. — The Modesto Police Department released its annual report Friday morning showing a decrease in nearly all crimes between 2022 and 2023 including homicides, robberies, assaults, burglaries, larceny and auto theft.
"I'm not surprised but that doesn't mean it's not good news," said Jacob Sundstrom, an Orange County resident who was visiting Modesto Friday. "I would prefer crime goes down. If it goes down again next year, that would be awesome, that would be good."
Except it’s not just last year, data shows that 2023 was at least the fifth year in a row where crime overall was down.
"When we moved here, people said, 'Well the crime rate is so high there,' well, maybe, but it does not feel that way," said new Modesto resident Deanna Marrujo.
Sylvia Martinez has been around for those five years and then some, having lived in Modesto since the 1980s. While she says the city still has its problems, things from her perspective are improving.
"No, it doesn't surprise me because I think our police officers do a great job. They could do the best they could do with what they have," said Martinez. "Nothing against the homeless, but I wish that instead of enabling them that they would do some other things that maybe help them and get them off the streets."
While overall crime was down, there were still a couple of slight increases in different areas, the biggest being in traffic collisions which were up more than 50% in 2023. Despite the increase, some residents believe the streets of Modesto are still safer than those of other cities.
"That was the first thing we noticed... people in San Francisco would lean on the horn," said Emmett Marrujo, Deanna's wife. "So (here), people seem more relaxed."
A more relaxed environment was just what the Marrujo were looking for when moving out of the Bay Area a few months ago and like many others, they found just that plus a sense of safety right in Modesto.
"It's a very well-kept secret, it's radically underestimated," said Deanna reflecting on her first few weeks in Modesto. "Everything's here. It's just really nice. We like it a lot."
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