Doug McCune used a full year of San Francisco crime data for 2009 (via the city’s the city’s DataSF website and created a 3D topographical map of San Francisco’s legal transgressions:
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Many of the maps have peaks in the Tenderloin, which is that high area sort of in the north-east center area of the city. Some are extremely concentrated (narcotics) and some are far more spread out (vehicle theft).
My favorite map is the one for prostitution (maybe “favorite” is the wrong choice of words there). Nearly all the arrests for prostitution in San Francisco … are peaking on Shotwell St. at the intersections of 19th and 17th. I’m sure the number of colorful euphemisms you can come up with that include the words “shot” and “well” are endless.
I love the way the mountain range casts a shadow over much of the city. There’s also a second peak in the Tenderloin (which I’m dubbing Mt. Loin).
For the 15 years or so I lived in San Francisco, I pretty much lived a crime-free life (not suffering any of it, as opposed to committing any of it, which we won’t talk about). About the only thing that happened to me was having the top of my convertible slashed (on the first night I owned it!), so I am probably not the best to comment directly on crime in San Francisco.
OK, there was that other night, when Dave and I injudiciously decided to go to that pool hall in the Tenderloin – somewhere like Ellis and Jones… We parked half a block away from the place, got out of the car, surveyed the area, and were afraid to walk that half a block. We got back in the car and sped off to a find a pool table in an area of town where we wouldn’t die some horrible and meaningless death.
But hey, by all means, come visit The City (as they like to call it there). I’m sure you’ll be perfectly safe… I still have friends who live there and they are, well, still alive. This has been a message from the San Francisco Convention and Visitors Bureau.
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