Where’s Murrietta? Not all California is Los Angeles and San Francisco.
Murrieta is half-way between LA and San Jose in Riverside County (and has been mis-identified as a suburb of San Diego in some articles, as it’s not even in San Diego County). Murrieta is about 90 minutes north of San Diego and is sandwiched between Lake Elsinore immediately north and Temecula immediately south, about 20 miles inland of the Housewives of Orange County’s Casa De Coto and 25 miles inland from San Juan Capistrano.
Riverside county is/was largely rural, and, along with San Bernadino County, held a very large republican population. After the housing boom that tossed the poor hispanics and blacks out of LA area rentals, a large faction moved into both counties in search of cheaper rents, changing the demographics and exploding the crime rate as over 3000 gangs and their spinoffs spread through the region.
Now Riverside county is turning into a bedroom community for LA commuters and will become even moreso when the lightrail opens access from LA to the area. Not only are there numerous new middle class housing tracts, the area is chock full of working ranches and agricultural enterprises, and of course the wine fields of Temecula just south.
Employment opportunities are sparse, with an unemployment rate that falls between 15-20%, with the Perris, Lake Elsinore, Murrieta areas being on the far side of 20%. It’s a hot and arid area; temp today at the ranch at 11am was 103 and climbing. Metered water can run as expensive as the electric bill is. Social services are limited.
gang list from 6 years ago:
http://iestreetlife.aforumfree.com/t3201-inland-empire-gang-list
unemployment in inland empire (2011):
http://inlandempirecenter.org/blog/unemployment-its-the-education-stupid/