Overview: La Mesa Police Department

“We attribute the decrease in crime to a combination of proactive policing, information-led policing strategies, and strong community partnerships.”

La Mesa residents and businesses got some good news recently: Crime saw an overall decline in the third quarter of 2025, with total crime cases falling compared to a year earlier during the same period.

According to the report from the La Mesa Chief of Police. the La Mesa Police Department successfully put to bed a number of cases, including those involving a vehicle robbery with a firearm in play and a countywide commercial burglary series leading to a number of arrests.

LMPD also oversaw a number of DUI checkpoints and traffic enforcement details to improve roadway safety around the city.

“We attribute the decrease in crime to a combination of proactive policing, information-led policing strategies, and strong community partnerships,” said LMPD Lieutenant Travis Higgins. “We continue to concentrate on crime prevention outreach as well as maintaining a presence in residential neighborhoods and retail areas.

“Our crime analyst also does a fantastic job of keeping us up to date on where the current hot spots, are so we can increase patrols in those areas.”

He credited outreach efforts with doing the heavy lifting of fighting crime through good, mutually cooperative relationships with locals, affording them the ability to get ahead of crime trends.

Being active in the community as a police force, Higgins went on to say,

“We have a dedicated community engagement specialist who works closely with community members and local businesses to help prevent crime,” Higgings added.

“At events like Coffee-with-Cop, Citizens’ Academy, and National Night Out, we’ve received positive feedback regarding our visible presence in the community, attendance at community gatherings, active engagement on social media, quick responses to their questions and concerns.”A

Anyone in need of crime prevention advice, information on Neighborhood Watch programs, site security inspections, or vacation checks while they are out of town is encouraged to contact La Mesa’s community engagement specialist Bri Ohlendorf at (619) 667-7545 or bmunguia@cityoflamesa.gov.

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