NEWPORT BEACH, Calif.—Overall crime in Newport Beach increased in 2021 compared to 2020, though serious crimes declined during the same period, Newport Beach Police Chief John Lewis said in a presentation during a Feb. 22 city council meeting. Part 1 crimes—defined by the FBI on its uniform crime report as murder, aggravated assault, rape, robbery, larcey, vehicle theft, and arson—decreased by 8.8 percent, or 172 fewer cases from 2020 to 2021. This same category of crime in 2021 also decreased 17.6 percent, or 381 fewer cases, when compared to the 5 year average of 2016 to 2020. For violent crimes, Newport Beach had 122 instances in 2021, a 4 percent decrease from 2020, with Lewis noting the city has less violent crimes relative to other Orange County cities. Newport Beach had two homicides in 2021, compared to just one in 2020. The first was when a homeowner fatally shot a …