LOS ANGELES (CNS) - Los Angeles police received 22% more calls reporting loud partying in the first 11 months of this year compared to last, according to a report published today.
The figures, obtained through publicly available call for service information, may provide insight into how seriously residents followed coronavirus-related restrictions this year, according to the nonprofit news group Crosstown at the USC Annenberg School of Communication and Journalism, which published the data.
Between Jan. 1 and Nov. 30, more than 29,500 people called the Los Angeles Police Department to report loud gatherings, over 5,000 more than last year.
In March, when businesses began shutting down and the public was first told to stay indoors, calls decreased by roughly 6% compared to March 2019. But they began to ramp up in April and May, when the data show there was an increase of 55% and 41% in those months over last year.
In June, party calls dipped to 36% fewer than last year, but increased again in July through November, Crosstown reported, adding that the calls “shed some insight into possibly why the region has not been able to get a handle on curbing new infections.''
During the fall months, the calls remained between 26% and 32% higher than in 2019, the site reported.
The increase could also be a result of added concern over large gatherings, and in many cases, more than one person may be calling in about the same event, according to Crosstown.
“The spike is disconcerting, as coronavirus cases are now surging,'' Ethan Ward wrote in the Crosstown report. “Worse, it is a trend that could continue this week, if people from different households get together to celebrate the arrival of the new year.''
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