Dear Editor:

L.A. crime is not experiencing the frightening days of violent crime. Overall, L.A. is a safer place compared to 1980s and 1990s.

The crimes in Los Angeles have decreased 6% from 2015 to 2016. However, in 2017 crime rates have increased up less than 1 percent, a small increase. We need to reexamine how we are evaluating our crime statistics.
 
Did we reach a point for celebration? Not yet. Celebration can be legitimate when the rate of recidivism decreases. It is important to focus on what the county is doing to prevent individuals from being rearrested as well as assess prevention programs that are implemented in local at risk communities.
 
Vanessa Torres, Erika Unruh, Cristina Pinedo, Ryan Nguyen (The authors of this letter are Master of Social Work candidates Cal State Long Beach; Erika and Vanessa are Downey residents.)