Big Increases in Crime In 2022-Homicides Decrease Slightly

Aggravated assaults and burglaries rose significantly.

Council On Criminal Justice

Murders and gun assaults in major American cities fell slightly during the first half of 2022, while robberies and some property offenses posted double-digit increases, according to a new analysis of crime trends released today by the Council on Criminal Justice (CCJ).

Examining homicides in 23 cities that make data readily available, the study found that the number of murders in the first half of the year dipped by 2% compared to the first half of 2021 (a decrease of 54 homicides in those cities).

Gun assaults also fell, by 6%, during the first six months of this year compared to the same timeframe last year, while overall aggravated assault counts rose 4%. Robbery jumped by 19%.

The study’s authors called the drop in homicides encouraging but noted that the murder rate is still 39% higher than it was during the first half of 2019, before the COVID-19 pandemic.

The new study found that nine of the cities providing data recorded a rise in homicide during the first six months of the year, while 14 cities experienced either no change or reductions in homicide.

In other findings, trends in most property crimes reversed from the first two years of the pandemic. Residential burglaries (+6%), nonresidential burglaries (+8%), and larcenies (+20%) all rose in the first half of 2022. Motor vehicle thefts increased (+15%) but that trend began during the early months of the pandemic.

The number of drug offenses fell in the first half of 2022 (-7%), continuing earlier pandemic patterns.

The analysis updates a series of earlier reports with new data through June 2022. It examined crime rates for 10 offenses in a total of 29 cities, including Atlanta, Detroit, Baltimore, Boston, Chicago, Denver, Memphis, San Francisco, Washington, D.C., and Philadelphia. The smallest city in the sample was Norfolk, VA, with 245,000 residents; the largest was New York, with more than 8.4 million residents. Not all cities reported data for every crime.

The authors said that in response to the elevated rates of homicide, robbery, and other violent crimes, cities should adopt “comprehensive enforcement, prevention, and intervention efforts that focus on the specific people and places where violence is concentrated.” In January, CCJ’s Violent Crime Working Group produced a roadmap of 10 essential actions that cities can take now to reduce violence and save lives, without the need for new laws or enormous expenditures.

About the Council on Criminal Justice

The Council on Criminal Justice (CCJ) is a nonpartisan invitational membership organization and think tank that advances understanding of the criminal justice policy challenges facing the nation and build consensus for solutions based on facts, evidence, and fundamental principles of justice.

Observations

The data is based on crimes reported to law enforcement. Per the Bureau of Justice Statistics, only 40 percent of violent crime is reported. It’s significantly less for property crimes.

We should also note that property crime has decreased in recent years. If the trend for larcenies, burglaries, and motor vehicle thefts increases, it would be a substantial change.