Dear Neighbors,
The following information is from MPD and responds to an inquiry regarding the number of homicides in the District and how it stands in comparison to another major city and previous years.
“The current number of homicides in DC stands at 138; at the same point last year, we experienced 184. This is a 25% reduction thus far this year. The 2008 total was 186. In 1991, DC recorded 479 homicides, its worst murder rate in the past 20 years. In the ensuing years, homicides progressively dropped in this city. This year, DC will record its lowest number of homicides in about four decades.”
According to MPD, this achievement recognizes the joint efforts of MPD, District agencies, residents, and other community stakeholders. Special kudos and thanks to Chief Cathy Lanier, 5D Commander Lamar Greene, 5D MPD Officers and Civilian Employees, Councilman Harry Thomas, Councilman Phil Mendelson, and to you.
Robert
Robert Vinson Brannum
Chairman, 5th District Citizens' Advisory Council, Inc. - www.5dcac.org
These are good numbers. During a year that brought economic hard times to many, homicides actually dropped. I haven't seen the numbers for other crimes, but I'm eager to see those, and to see the PSA, by PSA breakdowns. From the same source:
CRIME STATISTICS IN THE DISTRICT OF COLUMBIA
01/01/09 - 12/01/09
01/01/09 - 12/01/09
Report shows a total number of crimes captured in the Analytical Services Application crime report database made public through DC Data Catalog. Report depicts variations in number of crimes for the period January - December in 2007 - 2009 years, shows contribution of each crime category to total, displays distribution of crimes count in DC Police Districts.
Violent crimes category includes HOMICIDE, SEX ABUSE, ROBBERY, ASSAULT WITH A DEADLY WEAPON offenses.
Property crimes category includes ARSON, BURGLARY, STOLEN AUTO, THEFT, THEFT FROM AUTO offenses.
Violent Crime
POLICE DISTRICT 01/01/07 - 12/01/07 01/01/08 - 12/01/08 01/01/09 - 12/01/09
FIRST 1220 1174 1079
SECOND 503 489 475
THIRD 1417 1368 1236
FOURTH 941 862 863
FIFTH 976 931 852
SIXTH 1100 1171 1180
SEVENTH 1389 1309 1254
NONE 61 42 35
Property Crime
POLICE DISTRICT 01/01/07 - 12/01/07 01/01/08 - 12/01/08 01/01/09 - 12/01/09
FIRST 4652 4755 4705
SECOND 4364 4821 5097
THIRD 4498 4548 4562
FOURTH 2346 2290 2270
FIFTH 3126 2805 2657
SIXTH 2980 3297 2857
SEVENTH 2580 2523 2528
NONE 148 125 169
24 comments:
What do the corresponding PG County numbers look like since 1991? Anyone know?
I'd like to know the same...
Looks like homicides have increased 243% in PG county from 1984 to 2004. Not sure what the stats are through 2009. Here's where to find the info:
http://www.princegeorgescountymd.gov/Government/PublicSafety/Police/2004Statistics/12-Year_YTD_Trends.pdf
Here's a link to that PDF, so folks don't have to cut and paste.
Aside: If you don't know how to turn a URL into a hyperlink, it's not hard to do. Here's an explanation.
What's the population of PG done over that period? It would have to have increased by 85% or more to explain the increase in homicides purely by population increase.
So handgun ownership in DC is legalized and violent crime goes down...hmmmmm
anonymous 5:12, since handgun laws have gone into effect I've gained 10 pounds (for real!). I guess I have the new gun law to blame for that.
your logic is terribly, terribly flawed.
Yesterday, I heard at the hardware store that district residents can now apply for background check permits in otder to keep guns in their homes -- legally. Anyone else hear this?
Violent crime is down across the nation. Therefore, DC is following a national trend. For Brannum and others to be treating this as some kind of singular victory for DC is misleading. Oh wait, DC is isn't in a state, therefore it is immune to national socioeconomic factors. Nevermind.
(Google it: National violent crime down)
"Crime is down across the board in the United States, an FBI release concludes. Overall, the rate of violent crime fell by 4.4 percent and the rate of property crime dropped by 6.1 percent, the FBI reported. The Federal Bureau of Investigation notes in the FBI release that violent crime fell in the US during the first six months of 2009 compared to the same period last year."
Lanier also stated that MPD has closed 75% of murder cases this year and that it used to be considered good to close half of them. The news coverage didn't provide any further statistics.
You can consider the drop in murders and the rise in solved cases a victory for DC or not, but having fewer people killed on the streets where I live is a good thing regardless of what is happening in the rest of the country.
I'd like to know the rate of juvenile crime over the same period. If I had to guess, I'm going to say it has skyrocketed. I'd also like to know about the percentage of juveniles who are actually punished when they are found "responsible" for such crime.
I'm guessing that's at an all-time low, seeing as how juvenile criminals are coddled more than any other population group in this city.
i'll take that as a victory for DC, regardless of the national trend. i live HERE.
its amazing how much nicer this city has gotten.
How does DC compare to other cities? For instance, I think we have something like nearly five times the major crime rates as NYC, considerably more than other major cities, etc.
A big part is our juvenile justice system, which is run by judges put in office during the Barry era. They simply refuse to put juveniles in prison, so the same few are on essentially uninterrupted crime sprees until they are adults.
Cops I know say some of these kids are responsible for dozens of stolen cars, break-ins, muggings, etc., and when arrested, even with very strong evidence, they are back on the streets, often within hours.
Until we address that we will always have high crime.
It's getting harder and harder for the poorest to live in cities. The urban poor commit murders in the greatest proportion. Of course, most cities are seeing drops in crime, as gentrification is a national phenomenon.
Whether the 2010's will show an increase in suburban carnage and school dysfunction seems likely, but who knows?
Hillman,
You hit the nail on the head! That is precisely the problem DC faces. In my opinion, the cops are doing a great job of making arrests, our council members are doing a pretty good job of responding to residents concerns and escalating issues, but the DC justice system is to blame for DC being the #1 city in all major crime categories (aside from the blame belonging to the actual criminals, of course).
oop oop,
i think you are being unfair to MPD here...a national drop of 4.4% in violent crime is less than a fifth of our local *25%* drop in homicides. Unless you find evidence of a 25% drop in homicides nationwide, you are needlessly taking credit away from a great success for MPD.
now, the more interesting story may be the correlation between this drop and the drop in new york city: http://www.cbsnews.com/blogs/2009/12/29/crimesider/entry6034369.shtml
perhaps both cities are using the same best practices? analyzing the stats and plotting law enforcement strategy using empirical data seems to be getting good results in crime reduction...
I guess I should have followed the instructions on how to make that URL a hyperlink, huh
If you get rid of all the black people in this city or any city major city for that matter, murders would be virtually nil. That is not to say that all blacks commit murder. But that almost all murders in most major cities are committed by blacks.
I would venture a guess that the homicides have tracked the declining black population in DC.
I have to disagree with Jordan's opinion that "our council members are doing a pretty good job of responding to residents concerns and escalating issues,..." He must not have seen Tommy Wells whine about locking up young criminals at a recent meeting about car jackings in my neighborhood, or seen the Phil Mendelson hearings on gun crimes. These guys worry more about plastic bags than you have having a gun stuck in your face.
If you get rid of all the poor men in this city or any city major city for that matter, murders would be virtually nil. That is not to say that all poor men commit murder. But that almost all murders in most major cities are committed by poor men.
I would venture a guess that the homicides have tracked the declining poor male population in DC.
I'm going to go with Racist Troll on this one. I suspect the numbers would more closely track economic class, than race.
Anon 10:52, I don't know that the juvenile numbers would sky rocket. I suspect they would not.
To me the most remarkable number is the one djbays cites where MPD claims a 75% closure rate for homicides. That's a very high number. If accurate (I have seen it in the news, so it is coming from MPD), it would help explain a big part of the drop. Lock up the core offenders, and homicides will drop.
I still think the numbers are pretty remarkable considering the economic downturn (I think many of us expected that to worsen crime).
Another factor that we should be looking at is the CANS system. This is how prosecutors tell officers to show up to testify. I have heard from both MPD officers, and prosecutors, that a new policy under the Fenty administration is to not always CANS every listed officer. For example, if 10 officers (that's an unusually long list in my experience, but this is just an easy example) are listed on the form filled out by the prosecutor, only the top 2, or 3 of those officers might actually be called to court. And then those officers might be busy and fail to appear. Alternately, the prosecutor might actually need the testimony of all 10 officers because each one might have a different point upon which only he/she can testify.
I've also heard that there was some kind of false rumor circulating among officers that they might not be getting paid overtime to come in and testify. For whatever reason, sometimes officers aren't there when prosecutors need them. That means that prosecutors have no choice but to attempt to enter into a plea bargain (what usually happens anyway). This can lead to the "slap on the wrist" sentences that people often complain about. Just something to consider. And yes, I have actually seen this happen.
Yo Rob-
Why don't you give credit to all the other Police Chiefs and Councilmen across the country who started their positions well after this decline continued for more than DECADE?? I tell you Rob, that's one hell of an observation. Can't get much by you.
Stevie
Inked,
There are a lot of murders in PG Cty which bills itself as the richest black county in the country. This culture you see in the poor black communities is just as pervasive in the middle and working class black communities as well.
Anon 6:57,
It isn't "just as pervasive in the middle and work class black communities." PG is well known for its middle class black community, but not everyone there is middle class, or even working class. PG County has poor neighborhoods. If you want to support your argument you'll need to break things down a lot further than just by county.
Otherwise it's a bit like lumping all of DC together. I don't think crime in Georgetown has much in common with crime in Barry Farm, but if someone where to take all of DC as a whole, that would be the analysis.
PG County's estimated 2008 population: 820,852
PG County size: 498 square miles
DC's estimated 2009 population: a little under 600,000.
DC Size: 68.3 square miles.
PG County is larger in size, and population than DC. If it wouldn't make sense to jump Georgetown and Barry Farm together, how can it make sense to treat all of PG County as a single entity?
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