With three weeks still to go before the new year, at least 12 major U.S. cities have broken annual homicide records in 2021. Five have already topped records that were set or tied just last year. Philadelphia outpaced New York and Los Angeles with the most homicides, reporting 521 as of December 6. That’s an increase of 13 percent from 2020, a year that nearly broke the 1990 record. Chicago reported the most homicides overall with 739 deaths, a three percent rise over 2020. The city’s deadliest year remains 1970 when there were 974 homicides.
Other cities reporting a record number of homicides are Portland, Indianapolis, Toledo, Rochester, Columbus, Baton Rouge, Austin, Albuquerque, Louisville, Tucson and St. Paul in Minnesota.
Experts say there are a number of reasons possibly connected to the jump in homicides, including strained law enforcement staffing, a pronounced decline in arrests and continuing hardships from the pandemic, but that there is no clear answer across the board.
Source-ABC
