LAPD report reveals 91% decrease in investigations of terrorism in 2023

There was a 91% decrease in investigations into suspicious activity related to terrorism in Los Angeles in 2023, a stark drop compared to the 246 reports processed in 2015, according to an annual report released Wednesday.

The Los Angeles Board of Police Commission unanimously approved the Nationwide SAR Initiative, a report mandated in 2009 for all law enforcement agencies in the United States as ordered by the 9/11 Commission. The report is intended to encourage the sharing of information across multiple levels of government to prevent terrorism and other criminal activity.

LAPD began collecting Suspicious Activity Reports — or SARs — in 2008 to document reported or observed activity that was believed by officers to have a nexus to foreign or domestic terrorism. Usually the reports detail occurrences of “suspicious activity” — defined or observed behavior reasonably indicative of pre-operational planning related to terrorism or other criminal activity.

Earlier this year, the LAPD’s Office of Inspector General conducted a review of the 45 SARs submitted between 2022 and 2023. The report found that SARs processed since 2015 decreased by 91% — from 246 SARs in 2015 to 22 in 2023.

Read more: Los Angeles Daily News