The San Joaquin County District Attorney’s Office has released its first-ever public data report that gives insight on the types of cases referred to the office and how they affect the community.
The data report allows people to see where cases in 2020 originated from, trends of cases in the community and who is impacted by crime in San Joaquin County either as a defendant or a victim.
“There has been a national call for reform and sharing information with the public,” District Attorney Tori Verber Salazar said. “It is important for criminal justice agencies to practice transparency while strengthening public trust.”
Among the findings in the data was that the Victim-Witness Program served 14,000 people impacted by crime in 2020, and the program helped return approximately $1.6 million to compensate victims.
Statistics in the data also showed felonies made up a larger portion in crime than in past years.
Other findings in the data report showed that a majority of victims knew their defendant, 34 percent of victims were in an intimate relationship with the defendant and that males accounted for 79 percent of defendants, while 59 percent of victims were females.
Prosecutors said the findings will be used to shape and guide policies for the District Attorney’s Office.
Salazar said tracking data has been her priority since entering office in 2015 and the District Attorney’s Office will continue to follow the evidence in order to uphold the law in a fair manner.