The Oceanside Police Department continues to see significant progress in reducing crime across the city, with the recent countywide crime statistics report marking another year of positive trends for Oceanside.
The San Diego Association of Governments’ Annual Criminal Justice Bulletin disclosed that total “Group A” criminal offenses — which include all major crimes against people, property and society — declined by 21% from 2021 to 2024. This substantial reduction reflects the ongoing work of OPD initiatives throughout the city. Even in the most recent period from 2023 to 2024, Oceanside maintained this downward trajectory with a 7% decrease in total crimes.
The most dramatic improvements were seen in the “crimes against society” category, which includes drug and narcotic violations, weapons law violations, and other offenses that impact community well-being. These types of crimes decreased by 55% from 2021 to 2024, highlighting Oceanside’s focus on addressing quality-of-life issues that matter most to residents.
The decrease is the largest reduction in these crimes of any city across the county in a three-year period. Measure X has been a key funding mechanism for many of those efforts, such as increased time for crime suppression teams, community services officers, an additional Homeless Outreach Team, and youth gang diversion programs.
Property crimes, including burglary, theft, motor vehicle theft and fraud, also improved consistently, with the property crime rate declining 13% over the three-year period.
The data was released in SANDAG’s countywide Annual Criminal Justice Bulletin (August 2025).
Nonprofit groups, public agencies, and local businesses and organizations of varying interests are welcome to share their news by submitting press releases for publication. Send yours to news[at]northcoastcurrent.com. Submissions are edited for news style and brevity.
