San Francisco records 98 homicides in 2007; department reports arrests and patterns

The San Francisco Police Department reported 98 homicides for 2007 during a Jan. 16 presentation to the Police Commission, showing geographic clustering on the city's east side and a pronounced concentration in the Bayview district. Lieutenant John Murphy presented maps, district tallies and victim demographics and described trends that the department said will guide strategies in 2008.

Murphy said that Bayview recorded 24 homicides in 2007 and that the city saw an "unbelievable level of gun violence" in the prior three years but a sharp increase in knife-related homicides during 2007. "Homicides committed with sharp instruments (knives) [were] at 16 for last year," Murphy noted, calling it a meaningful increase over recent years. The presentation compared months, districts and victim demographics and included a breakdown of suspected motives.

Murphy told the commission that the department made arrests connected to a portion of the year's deaths: "There were 22 cases that were cleared by arrest; 32 people were arrested for the 98 homicides that occurred in 2007." He said some cases remain open and that identifying suspects is sometimes hampered when suspects are unknown or witnesses are unwilling to cooperate.

Commissioners asked for more detailed clearance metrics and for comparison data against other cities and past years to assess whether the trends reflect broader national patterns or local conditions. They also sought more information on how many arrests led to prosecutions and convictions; Murphy said some of those prosecution and conviction data would be provided in follow-up materials.

The commission paused the homicide discussion to allow members time to review the department's full packet and requested the department return with electronically distributed maps and charts and answers to specific follow-up questions about motives, arrest-to-conviction rates and gang-related versus non-gang homicides.