SF vehicle break-ins at record levels; police try new approach

Shattered glass from a recent car break-in remains on the sidewalk on Bay Street near Kearny Street in San Francisco, Calif. on Wednesday, Sept. 9, 2015. Police officials say auto burglaries have doubled from last year, especially along Bay Street in Fisherman's Wharf, Union Square and the Embarcadero. less Shattered glass from a recent car break-in remains on the sidewalk on Bay Street near Kearny Street in San Francisco, Calif. on Wednesday, Sept. 9, 2015. Police officials say auto burglaries have doubled from ... more Photo: Paul Chinn / The Chronicle 2015 Buy photo Photo: Paul Chinn / The Chronicle 2015 Image 1 of / 3 Caption Close SF vehicle break-ins at record levels; police try new approach 1 / 3 Back to Gallery

Vehicle break-ins have continued to soar this year in San Francisco, on top of already epidemic numbers, despite recent efforts by police to stop such crimes with more officers on the street.

Auto break-ins were up in every police district from the start of the year through the end of November, accounting for a 26 percent increase over the same period last year, according to the most recent data provided by the San Francisco Police Department.

At the same time, the rate of arrests for auto break-ins has dropped since last year from just below 2 percent to 1.6 percent.

From Jan. 1 to the end of November, San Francisco had 28,395 auto break-ins — about 85 a day — and already more than in any previous full year. The hardest-hit area was the Mission District, where car break-ins have gone up 86 percent from last year.

The latest data come after the Police Department decided in September to eliminate its 18-person citywide Patrol Bureau Task Force, instead assigning more officers to foot patrol in hopes of deterring criminals.

The different approach, however, doesn’t appear to be discouraging thieves. At the same time, residents and visitors have become more aggravated.

“I feel violated — it’s a helpless feeling,” 55-year-old Matt Dann said after pulling his Toyota pickup with a freshly smashed rear window into Auto Glass Now on Bryant Street in San Francisco’s South of Market neighborhood.

Dann was in town from Ventura County visiting his girlfriend. He left his truck full of personal belongings, including his laptop and clothing, parked on Gough Street near Sutter Street overnight.

Remarkably, none of his possessions was taken. He believes someone may have happened on the break-in during the crime, spooking the crook off.

His girlfriend, Mitsie O’Brien, said seeing break-ins’ aftermath near her home is nothing new. Every morning looking down Gough Street, she sees a river of pea-size glass shards in the gutters.

The car of another friend of hers has been broken into three times. She doesn’t even call the police anymore.

“I guess they’ve got way too much to do to follow up on a smashed window,” she said. “It’s part of city living, I guess.”

But for those who park on the street, the situation has gone from frustrating to infuriating. Even before this year, car break-ins had been exploding.

In 2011, the San Francisco Police Department reported 10,197 vehicle break-ins. That number rose to 26,040 in 2015 and to 24,624 in 2016. This year’s record of more than 28,000 will be higher once break-ins from the holiday shopping season are tallied.

While the worst-hit area was the Mission, auto break-ins went up in each of the city’s 10 police districts. In the Central District, which includes Fisherman’s Wharf and North Beach, auto break-ins were up 35 percent. In the Northern District, where tourists’ cars are often targets at the Palace of Fine Arts and Alamo Square, they were up 34 percent. In the Richmond police district, with Golden Gate Park as its southern border, break-ins were up 22 percent.

“There is a lot more work to be done, and we’re definitely not satisfied with what the statistics are telling us,” San Francisco Police Chief Bill Scott, who took command in January, said Friday.

Scott has deployed uniformed officers to areas of the city that have the most auto break-ins, and those areas have seen a decline, he said.

“We know that it matters, when we focus and we deploy,” he said. “The issue for us and the challenge is we can’t be everywhere, and we just don’t have that many officers to do that. The next-best thing is to deploy where incidents are happening.”

But while the number of auto break-ins may dip in areas with heavier police patrols, the numbers are rising citywide, possibly indicating that criminals simply move to parts of the city with fewer officers.

Six weeks ago, Scott created a citywide General Crimes Investigation Unit. The 48-person team, including 13 civilians with the crime analysis unit, will look into auto break-ins, along with home burglaries, robberies and bicycle thefts.

“One of the things we continue to see is there are a small amount of people that do this for a living,” he said. “They break into cars. They’re organized. Oftentimes they transcend district boundaries and city boundaries.” Auto break-ins are up 33 percent in Oakland this year and roughly 6 percent in San Jose, according to data provided by the cities’ police departments.

Scott isn’t alone in trying to stem the number of break-ins.

In September, the Board of Supervisors passed legislation requiring rental car companies to remind customers not to leave valuables inside their vehicles and to lock the doors. Another city law passed that month prohibits rental companies from displaying bar codes and advertisements marking them as rentals.

The break-ins have become so prevalent that they are already an issue in next year’s election.

Nick Josefowitz, a BART board member and candidate for San Francisco Supervisor in District Two — home of the Marina and Pacific Heights — recently tweeted break-in data from the Palace of Fine Arts showing 439 this year and only three arrests. He’s calling for more police and more accountability “for our entire criminal justice system.”

With arrests in less than 2 percent of break-ins, he said, the Police Department and city don’t have the information to tackle the issue.

“If we are going to develop a sophisticated response, we need people that can get to the bottom in a data-driven way and develop the appropriate response,” he said. “If it’s organized gangs or crimes of opportunity — I really feel we’re making policy in the dark about this.”

Until city officials can figure out how to deal with car break-ins, reminding people to guard their things will have to do.

“Don’t let anyone see you put anything into your trunk after you park, because people are watching,” acting Mayor London Breed said at a news conference Friday. “Try not to leave valuables visible in your car.”

And for those who are ripped off, hopes of seeing the offender brought to justice probably won’t ever be realized.

“Here is the statistical truth about car burglaries: Very, very few of them get solved,” Scott said. “It’s a pervasive issue. It’s a real problem for us in the city, and we just have to keep working to get better at it.”

Evan Sernoffsky is a San Francisco Chronicle staff writer. Email: esernoffsky@sfchronicle.com Twitter: @EvanSernoffsky