Citing a compilation by AH Datalytics, Ohio State University law Prof. Doug Berman of the Sentencing Law and Policy blog says that nearly two-thirds of big U.S. cities reported that homicides were down in 2022 compared with 2021 and that the nationwide murder count in large cities was down nearly five percent. These reported declines "follow notably high homicide rates in many locales in 2021, and we still have a long way to go to get back to pre-pandemic homicide levels," Berman says.
Chicago homicides were down 13 percent last year and another 17 perceent in first two weeks of 2023. Los Angeles homicides dropped five percent last year and are down 39 this year. New York City's total fell 11 percent last year and were down 12 percent in 2023. Philadelphia's murders dropped nine percent last year and are down 43 percent this year. Tese four very cities are not fully representative of what may be going on with homicides nationwide as 2023 gets started, and homicide trends in the first two weeks of January could change in many ways in the and months ahead.