After reading the Sun City Council Forum, and seeing talk of more police and some citizens who seem to know more than you all, I was wondering; How safe is Seal Beach? I did some Google searches and that did not provide much outside of opinions. Does the department have any info on this?
To me, Seal Beach is an incredibly safe place to live. Of course we have petty crime (all tourist towns do), but it seems like the weekly Crime Log is smaller than it was a few years ago. One can assume it’s due to your tactics, or at least I assume that. I feel people use “safety” as a way to stoke fear and I’m not a fan of that, thus my inquiry.
Thanks for taking the time to read and pass along any info if you have the chance.
Steve
Hi Steve,
Thanks for your email. This is an excellent question and one that we get asked fairly often, especially every other autumn. I am very happy to report that Seal Beach is generally a very safe community to live, work, and visit.
Generally, when people ask for specific information about crimes, trends, or other information about the Police Department or City government, we ask that they submit a Public Records Act Request. PRA Request information can be found here: https://cityofsealbeach.nextrequest.com/. We direct people to submit a PRA request for a couple of reasons. Ultimately, the City Clerk’s office will receive the request and then route it to the appropriate person or department to answer the question.
However, some information is easily available without needing to complete a PRA. For a more objective answer to the “how safe is Seal Beach” question, we direct people to visit the California Department of Justice website located here:https://openjustice.doj.ca.gov/data. Using this website, a person can compare crime in Seal Beach to other cities throughout California.
Now that I’ve shared how you can go about obtaining information regarding crime statistics in town, I thought it might be a good idea to discuss election season.
Even in Seal Beach, small town politics can quickly become hot topic issues. Community safety is always a safe platform for candidates. While we at the PD appreciate the support we receive from elected officials, political candidates, and the community at large, I feel the need to remind everyone that the Police Department is a politically neutral organization. We do not support, endorse, provide opinions, or otherwise get involved in the City of Seal Beach politics at any level. However, once a person separates from the Police Department, either for retirement or other reason, they are not held to this same policy. If a retired member of this organization wishes to support or endorse a Seal Beach candidate for election, they do so as a private individual and not as any representative of the Seal Beach Police Department.
To conclude this article, we ask the public to do their own research, cite reputable sources of information, and not fall victim to sensationalized views about the current state of this town, especially when it comes to public safety.
As always, we’re only a phone call away (non-emergency: (562) 594-7232, or emergency: 911). Or, email us ataskacop@sealbeachca.gov for more information.
