Crime rose about 19 percent in Lemon Grove last year, similar to increases seen countywide as communities grapple with a persistent pandemic and overworked police departments.There were 676 crimes committed in 2021, according to Lt. Pat McEvoy of the San Diego County Sheriff's Department, who presented the data Tuesday at a Lemon Grove City Council meeting.Although this includes a recent rise in some serious crimes, violent and property crime overall remained well below the numbers seen in the late 1990s and early 2000s, according to the McEvoy report.Aggravated assaults increased, while robberies decreased.There were two homicides in each of the previous three years, and the five rapes reported last year were similar to previous periods, according to the report.Shoplifting remained the largest type of theft.Dozens were produced at Home Depot, the only business to report that crime in double digits.About 46 percent of shoplifting defendants were arrested, according to the report.In general, adults were almost always the suspects.Of the city's 813 total arrests last year, only 1.5 percent were minors, according to authorities.The city is also paying officers overtime to enforce traffic regulations.Agents booked nearly 700 tickets last year, the highest total in at least five years, according to the report.The intersections where Broadway meets Lemon Grove Avenue and Massachusetts Avenue suffered the most collisions.McEvoy also asked residents to apply to serve on the sheriff's department's LGBTQ+ advisory council.Applications are accepted until the end of March.Officials also hope to expand the county's Mobile Crisis Response Team east of the county in the coming months.As long as there is no threat of violence, these teams of trained civilians can respond to people experiencing a mental health crisis instead of law enforcement.“You can release a sheriff's deputy to deal with a criminal complaint,” McEvoy said."We really want it."Officers still get to emergencies, like deadly shootings, within minutes, but response times to all other types of calls have far exceeded department benchmarks.A mile-long line of people walked, jumped, danced, skated and rode in Saturday's San Diego Pride parade in Hillcrest, overcoming renewed concerns about the pandemic to restore the march's standing as the largest public event city ​​annual.Six helicopters and several planes were dropping water on the fire, which started just before 11:30 a.m. southeast of Otay Lake;a moderate rate of spread has been reportedParade organizers say as many as 250,000 people may have attended the event.The highly contagious disease was first detected in wild birds in late December on the East Coast.The calf was born on February 1 and was fitted with a brace because its legs were bending incorrectly.Receive the latest news in Spanish Monday, Wednesday and Friday.Subscribe to our newsletterOccasionally, you may receive promotional content from the San Diego Union-Tribune en Español.To ensure that the San Diego Union-Tribune en Español remains healthy and robust, your donation, in any measure, is now more important than ever.Help us continue to inform the community.To donate click on the logo.Privacy Policy Privacy Policy Terms of Service Sign Up For Our Newsletters