Authorities seeing record-breaking homicides nationwide

WASHINGTON (TND) — Violent crimes leading to murder, hospitalizations, and injuries are surging at an alarming rate, causing concern for many Americans.

A November Gallup poll found 51% of people believe there is more crime in their area than a year ago and in many regions, the numbers back that up.

At least a dozen U.S. cities have already broken homicide records with three weeks left in the year.

Five of these cities have broken records that were set last year: Toledo and Columbus, Ohio; Baton Rouge, Louisiana; Louisville, Kentucky, and Indianapolis, Indiana. Albuquerque, New Mexico, broke its record in August.

The Federal Bureau of Investigation said there was a 30% increase in murders in 2020, which is the largest single-year jump since it started tracking crime statistics, but experts are still searching for a clear answer as to why this is happening.

The former Chief of Detectives for the New York Police Department says FBI data shows that arrests are at a 25-year low.

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Other criminal justice professors point to the large number of police officers who retired or resigned in the last two years, along with continued hardships from the pandemic.

White House Press Secretary Jen Psaki said last week that "in a lot of communities" the pandemic is a root cause of some crimes.

Data shows that Minneapolis and Milwaukee are also nearing their homicide records alarmingly quickly. The medical examiner in Milwaukee is preparing to conduct autopsies after four people were found dead after a suspected murder-suicide.