Hawthorne crime in numbers: the short answer
The Hawthorne Police Department reported 470 violent crimes and 1,550 property crimes to the California Department of Justice for 2025. Against the city's population of 85,191 in the Census Bureau's American Community Survey (2020-2024), that works out to about 5.5 violent crimes and 18.2 property crimes per 1,000 residents. We do not label any city or street safe or unsafe. These figures, and the address-level tools below, let you judge for yourself.
Violent crime fell 21.1% from 2024 to 2025 and was 25.2% lower than in 2015. Property crime fell 23.3% in 2025 and was 37.6% below 2015. Vehicle theft fell 32.5% in 2025, to 436, after reaching a high of 702 in 2023.
Hawthorne crime by year, 2015 to 2025
These are the counts the Hawthorne Police Department reported to the state, from the California DOJ OpenJustice Crimes and Clearances file (1985-2025). Violent crimes are homicide, rape, robbery and aggravated assault. Property crimes are burglary, motor vehicle theft and larceny-theft over $400.
| Year (Hawthorne PD) | Violent crimes | Robbery | Aggravated assault | Property crimes | Burglary | Vehicle theft | Larceny-theft over $400 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2015 | 628 | 246 | 341 | 2,482 | 479 | 535 | 1,468 |
| 2016 | 654 | 298 | 309 | 2,533 | 442 | 574 | 1,517 |
| 2017 | 587 | 275 | 282 | 2,273 | 408 | 515 | 1,350 |
| 2018 | 617 | 232 | 348 | 1,705 | 294 | 347 | 1,064 |
| 2019 | 636 | 190 | 409 | 1,485 | 199 | 356 | 930 |
| 2020 | 675 | 165 | 480 | 1,631 | 281 | 513 | 837 |
| 2021 | 800 | 205 | 542 | 1,830 | 230 | 612 | 988 |
| 2022 | 631 | 175 | 401 | 1,772 | 284 | 587 | 901 |
| 2023 | 548 | 180 | 321 | 1,921 | 251 | 702 | 968 |
| 2024 | 596 | 183 | 374 | 2,020 | 239 | 646 | 1,135 |
| 2025 | 470 | 154 | 276 | 1,550 | 160 | 436 | 954 |
Violent crime trend in Hawthorne
Violent crime peaked at 800 reported offenses in 2021, driven by aggravated assaults, which reached 542 that year. It fell to 548 in 2023, rose to 596 in 2024, then dropped to 470 in 2025, the lowest in the period. The city recorded 10 homicides in 2025, against 8 in 2024 and 0 in 2018.
Property crime and vehicle theft trend in Hawthorne
Property crime fell from 2,533 in 2016 to 1,485 in 2019, climbed back to 2,020 in 2024, then fell to 1,550 in 2025. Burglary has dropped by two thirds since 2015, from 479 to 160. Vehicle theft rose to a high of 702 in 2023, then fell to 436 in 2025, below the 535 of 2015. If you are buying a home without a garage, ask your insurer how that affects a car policy.
Hawthorne compared with nearby South Bay cities
This table uses the same two sources for every city: 2025 counts from each city's own police department in the DOJ file, and ACS 2020-2024 population. We list only cities with their own police departments, not areas patrolled by the Los Angeles County Sheriff.
| City police department, 2025 | Violent crimes | Per 1,000 residents | Property crimes | Per 1,000 residents |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Hawthorne | 470 | 5.5 | 1,550 | 18.2 |
| Gardena | 360 | 6.1 | 1,746 | 29.4 |
| Inglewood | 696 | 6.7 | 3,238 | 31.0 |
| Torrance | 425 | 3.0 | 3,594 | 25.3 |
| El Segundo | 67 | 4.0 | 570 | 34.0 |
Hawthorne's violent crime rate was below Gardena's and Inglewood's and higher than Torrance's and El Segundo's. Its property crime rate was the lowest of the five. Per-resident rates can look high in a small city with many daytime workers and visitors who are not counted as residents, which may affect El Segundo's figure. Rates per resident are a rough guide, not a measure of risk on a given street.
Hawthorne compared with California as a whole
Across all California agencies in the same DOJ file, 170,397 violent crimes and 705,925 property crimes were reported for 2025. With the state's ACS 2020-2024 population of 39,287,377, that is about 4.3 violent and 18.0 property crimes per 1,000 residents. Hawthorne's violent crime rate of 5.5 was above the state figure, and its property crime rate of 18.2 was about the same. Statewide figures mix big cities, suburbs and rural counties, so a comparison with neighboring cities usually tells you more.
How often Hawthorne crimes are solved
The DOJ file also counts clearances, which usually means an arrest. In 2025 the Hawthorne Police Department cleared 220 violent crimes and 193 property crimes, about 46.8% and 12.5% of the offenses reported that year. Clearances can relate to crimes from earlier years, so treat the percentages as approximate. Statewide, California agencies cleared 45.9% of violent crimes and 11.2% of property crimes in 2025 on the same measure, so Hawthorne's clearance rates were a little above the state's for both. For homeowners, low property-crime clearance everywhere is a reason to think about lighting, cameras, a garage and the right insurance.
How to check crime and risk for a Hawthorne address
No official dataset publishes Hawthorne crime by neighborhood, so we do not rank areas. Use these tools for the street you are considering.
Hawthorne Police Department community crime map
The department's crime page says it switched to a new crime map provider to improve accuracy; open the map from that page. Search the address and look at a full year of incidents, not one month, and compare a few nearby blocks.
Hawthorne Police Community Affairs Unit and neighborhood groups
The department's Community Affairs Unit oversees policing by district and works with eleven neighborhood groups. Call (310) 349-2888 or email cau@cityofhawthorne.org to ask which group covers the address, when it meets, and what issues residents have raised.
California DOJ OpenJustice
OpenJustice publishes the yearly crime and clearance counts used above, plus arrest data, for every California agency. Use it to check trends for Hawthorne and any city you are comparing.
FBI Crime Data Explorer
The FBI's Crime Data Explorer shows the agency's reports to the national system. Figures can differ from the state file because of reporting methods, so do not mix the two in one comparison.
California Megan's Law website
The state Department of Justice runs the Megan's Law website, which maps registered sex offenders whose addresses are public. Search the area around the home you are considering.
Insurance, flood and fire: other risks to check in Hawthorne
Crime is one part of the risk on a property, and for many Hawthorne owners bigger costs can come from insurance and from repairs to older building systems. Look up the parcel on the FEMA Flood Map Service Center and check CAL FIRE's Fire Hazard Severity Zone map, then get at least two insurance quotes before you remove contingencies. Our California homeowners insurance guide, earthquake insurance guide and wildfire zones guide explain each check. For prices and areas across the city, see our Hawthorne homes for sale guide, and for statewide figures see our guide to California crime rates by city.