Even as the economy worsened, the number of property crimes reported in North County communities fell in the first half of 2009 compared with the first half of 2008, according to statistics released over the last week by North County law enforcement agencies.

However, the number of violent crime reports was up from January to June.

While county crime analysts have warned that tough times historically have corresponded with increases in property crimes, that effect was not reported in most parts of North County in the first half of 2009, a period during which unemployment rose steadily, hitting 10.1 percent in June.

"Knock on wood," said Sgt. Ron McCracken, a detective with the Sheriff's Department's substation in Fallbrook, where property crime reports fell by about 19 percent in the first part of the year.

It is unclear why violent crime reports rose in most of North County, though statistics show that aggravated assaults accounted for many of the crimes. Aggravated assaults are attacks that cause serious injury or involve a deadly weapon, or both.

Cynthia Burke, director of the San Diego Association of Government's criminal justice research division, said the economy may be a reason why North County's violent crime headed upward after hitting a 25-year low in 2008.

"Maybe there is more violent crime between people who know each other because of stress," Burke said. "Or if people are using alcohol or drugs more to drown their sorrows, there could be violence in certain situations."

McCracken, who heads investigations in Fallbrook, said about half of the 30 additional aggravated assaults that Fallbrook recorded in the first half of 2009 were linked to domestic violence. He has no doubt the economy is contributing.

"More people are staying at home and they have nothing to do, and most (of the assaults) are attributed to drinking," McCracken said. "One thing leads to another, and you have people beating each other up."

In Carlsbad, where violent crime rose 58 percent in the first half of 2009 compared with the same period in 2008, aggravated assaults more than doubled, from 55 to 118.

An increase in domestic violence reports accounted for some of those assaults, police spokeswoman Lynn Diamond said.

In the first half of 2008, seven aggravated assaults were linked to domestic violence; in the first half of 2009, 28 assaults were linked to domestic violence, she said.

Diamond said the assaults also were connected to the city's bar-heavy downtown, which saw 13 aggravated assaults in the first half of 2008, but 33 by midyear 2009.

In addition to a possible rise in domestic violence, law enforcement leaders pointed to other reasons for the rise in violent crime reports.

In Valley Center, Sgt. Bob Bishop said the spike in reported aggravated assaults, from 26 in the first half of last year to 51 in the first half of this year, could be attributed in part to the station's improved relationships with the five Indian tribes the Valley Center Sheriff's Substation serves.

"We are getting people coming forward that years ago wouldn't even talk to us," Bishop said.

In Escondido, where violent crimes were up about 20 percent, there were 80 strong-arm robberies in the first half of the year compared with 48 in the first part of 2008.

Police spokesman Lt. Bob Benton said most of the robberies involved teens threatening each other and taking cell phones, iPods and skateboards. He said the department became aware of the problem early this year and responded with curfew sweeps and increased patrols in neighborhoods where the robberies were concentrated.

Benton said he is pleased that Escondido's property crime is about level compared with last year, but he cautioned that the economy's effect could still play out.

"The increase in crime typically follows about a year after the economy fails, and usually you'll see an uptick in the crimes of property," he said.

In Escondido, as in most places in the North County, vehicle theft reports were down significantly in the first half of 2009, compared with the first half of 2008, from 422 to 360.

San Marcos recorded a drop from 167 to 97; Vista from 257 to 207; Carlsbad from 109 to 57 and Oceanside from 306 to 212.

Despite the downturn in the economy, Fallbrook, Poway, Carlsbad, San Marcos and Vista recorded drops in burglary reports. Vista saw one of the more dramatic drops, with 421 reported burglaries in the first half of 2008, but 276 reported by midyear 2009.

Call staff writer Sarah Gordon at 760-740-3517.