Nine cities reached record homicides in 2022 as staffing shortages plagued police departments

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Nine cities — including two in Colorado — saw record homicides in 2022 as major police departments continue to struggle with staffing shortages in 2023, according to law enforcement and local reports.

Overall homicides in large U.S. cities were down about 5% in 2022 compared to 2021, when murders in large cities hit a 25-year high.

"Your issues are newish leadership. You've got some defending. You've got talk of police reform — guardian policing stuff like that," said Betsy Brantner Smith, a retired officer and president of the National Police Association, who has trained police in the cities on this list. 

"In the last few years, we've been talking about Chicago, New York, LA, and now, it's a trickle-down. … And this trend you've pointed out here with smaller cities is going down into the rural areas and into the counties, and if we don't get a handle on this, this is going to be a nationwide problem."

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A police officer views where one person was shot dead and several others were wounded Feb. 19, 2022, in Portland, Ore.? (REUTERS/Mathieu Lewis-Rolland)

Many city officials continue to point to the lingering impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on violent crime, which began to spike in the spring and summer of 2020, particularly after George Floyd’s murder in May 2020 sparked a national reckoning that put a strain on communities' relationships with police in cities across the United States. 

Many urban departments tackling higher violent crime rates faced, and continue to face, staffing shortages and leadership changes. Brantner Smith noted that several of the cities on this list have new police chiefs. 

Albuquerque

Albuquerque, New Mexico, saw a record 120 homicides in 2022 compared to a record 110 the previous year, according to Albuquerque Police Department data.

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Albuquerque began recording annual homicide numbers in 2018, using the FBI’s National Incident-Based Reporting System (NIBRS).

"They [formerly] had about 70, 80 homicides a year in Albuquerque, and that's a pretty decent-sized city. You know, it's New Mexico. They have the border and gang and drug issues they've always had. But now their homicides are consistently in the three digits," Brantner Smith said.

Albuquerque saw a record 120 homicides in 2022 compared to a record 110 the previous year, according to Albuquerque Police Department data. (Mario Tama)

The city’s homicide total averaged about 45 homicides per year over the last 35 years, according to KRQE.

"It’s been a tough year," Albuquerque Police Department Chief Harold Medina said at a November 2022 press conference. "This is a nationwide trend. We are falling in line with a lot of the other major, big cities."

Aurora

Aurora, Colorado, experienced record homicide numbers in 2022. The Colorado Bureau of Investigation (CBI) began tracking homicide numbers in 2008, according to FOX 31 Denver.

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Colorado’s third-largest city just east of Denver reported 50 homicides in 2022 compared to 42 in 2021 and just 28 in 2019.

Aurora, Colorado, experienced record homicide numbers in 2022. The Colorado Bureau of Investigation (CBI) began tracking homicide numbers in 2008, according to FOX 31 Denver. (Chet Strange/Bloomberg)

Aggravated assaults also reached record-high numbers last year, FOX 31 reported, citing data from the Aurora Police Department and CBI.

Colorado Springs

Colorado Springs, Colorado’s second-largest city, about an hour and 20 minutes south of Denver, had a record 54 homicides in 2022, compared to the city’s previous record of 44 homicides in 2021, according to data from the Colorado Springs Police Department.

That total includes five victims who were shot dead at an LGBT club in November.

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Violent crime in general is on the rise across Colorado, and the Common Sense Institute points to various contributing factors, including a heavier presence of fentanyl, drug trafficking, a 15.5% decrease in Colorado’s incarceration rate and certain criminal justice policy reforms.

Tim Bates, Erric Ramirez, Malissa Ramirez, Trinity Ramirez and Fred Ramirez deliver flowers near a gay nightclub in Colorado Springs, Colo., Nov. 20, where a shooting occurred. (AP/Geneva Heffernan)

"Compared to other states, Colorado ranks first in motor vehicle theft and second in property crimes," the Institute said in an October 2022 report. "This year, Denver, Aurora, Pueblo and Westminster ranked among the top ten of 167 American cities surveyed in several crime categories."

The Institute concluded that there "seems to be a direct correlation between criminal justice reforms that have made punishments for committing crimes less severe and allowed more criminals back on the streets."

Little Rock

Little Rock, Arkansas, reported a record 81 homicides in 2022 compared to 65 in 2021.

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"It's very concerning for me, the senseless acts of violence that we saw last year resulting in that high number," Little Rock Police Department Chief Heath Helton told KATV. Helton, who took over after the previous police chief came under investigation after he was involved in a shooting, added that there are some ways the department can try to increase its "visibility" in areas seeing violent crime.

Little Rock, Arkansas, reported a record 81 homicides in 2022 compared to 65 in 2021. (Paul Harris)

Milwaukee

Milwaukee reached its third homicide record in three years in November 2022, when it reported 194 homicides compared to a total of 193 in 2021.

Wisconsin’s largest city reported a total of 214 homicides over the course of 2022, an 11% increase compared to 2021, according to the Milwaukee Police Department.

Milwaukee Police Association President Andrew Wagner told FOX 6 Milwaukee in November 2022 that the city was experiencing a police staffing shortage, an issue many of the cities on this list are facing.

Milwaukee reached its third homicide record in three years in November 2022, when it reported 194 homicides compared to 193 in 2021. (AP Photo/Morry Gash, File)

"Unfortunately, I think what took us a very short time of two years to get into is going to take us half a decade to get out of in order to train the officers, get the budget that we need to support the public safety that we should have in the city," he told the outlet.

Portland

Portland, Oregon, also reached all-time high homicides in November 2022, when it hit 93 murders, outpacing 92 murders recorded in 2021.

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The city recorded a total of 101 homicides over the course of 2022, according to Portland Police Department crime statistics, and it has been trying to bounce back from budget and personnel cuts implemented after Floyd's murder in 2020, which sparked 100 days of protests and riots in Portland.

Portland Police investigate a shooting that took place during a protest for Amir Locke, which officials said left one dead and five others injured Feb. 19, 2022, in Portland, Ore.? (Nathan Howard)

"They have big staffing issues now. They're trying to come back from that," Brantner Smith said, pointing to the city's progressive leadership as part of the reason she is "not surprised" Portland made the list of cities with record homicides in 2022.

A longtime Portland resident named Carol previously told Fox News in September that "people think they can do anything now" with an "overburdened" police force "in the midst of … lawlessness."

Raleigh

Raleigh, North Carolina, saw its highest number of homicides in 2022 since at least 1995. North Carolina’s second-largest city recorded 49 homicides in 2022, a nearly 50% increase compared to the 33 homicides recorded in 2021, according to the FBI’s NIBRS.

In October 2022, a 15-year-old boy allegedly gunned down five people, including his teenage brother and an off-duty Raleigh police officer, in a deadly rampage around a relatively safe neighborhood.

In this aerial image taken with a drone, officers work at the scene of a shooting in Raleigh, N.C., Oct. 13, 2022. (Travis Long/The News & Observer via AP)

Jon Guze, a senior fellow in legal studies at the John Locke Foundation, a North Carolina-based conservative think tank, previously attributed part of the issue to a police staffing shortage in Raleigh.

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"The evidence has just been piling up now for more than 20 years that police presence deters crime," Guze said. "And if you don't have enough officers, especially in high-crime, high-disorder neighborhoods, you're going to get more crime of all kinds, and especially homicides."

San Antonio

San Antonio had a record 231 homicides in 2022 compared to 161 in 2021, according to the San Antonio Police Department and the FBI’s NIBRS.

That number includes a total of 53 migrants who died on an abandoned tractor-trailer in a human trafficking operation.

Police and other first responders work the scene where officials say dozens of people have been found dead and others were taken to hospitals with heat-related illnesses after a semitrailer containing suspected migrants was found June 27, 2022, in San Antonio.? (AP Photo/Eric Gay)

"Although there is a slight increase in violent crime compared to last year, San Antonio remains a safe city," San Antonio Police Chief William McManus said in a 2022 crime update for the city. "Violent crime, particularly homicides and assaults, can be attributed to high-risk behavior to include drug and gang activity and personal disputes among acquaintances."

Brantner Smith described McManus as a "pretty good leader" who has to report to a largely left-leaning city council pushing for police reforms.

Tacoma

Tacoma, Washington, reached a homicide record of 35 last year, more than any year since the city south of Seattle began keeping track of murder numbers in 1980, KIRO reported. It cited data from the Washington Association of Sheriffs and Police Chiefs (WASPC).

WASPC recently pointed to staffing shortages as part of Washington’s recent violent crime increase.

Tacoma, Washington, reached a homicide record of 35 last year, more than any year since the city south of Seattle began keeping track of murder numbers in 1980. (Meleah Reardon Photography via Getty Images)

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"For more than a dozen years, Washington has had the fewest law enforcement officers per capita, ranking 51st in the nation. Today, our state has 500 fewer officers than it did a year ago," WASPC Executive Director Steven Strachan wrote in a January press release. "That affects prevention and response time to 911 calls and increases stress on our remaining police officers."

Other cities that saw higher homicides in 2022 include New Orleans; Birmingham, Alabama; Pittsburgh; Harrisburg, Pennsylvania; Atlanta; and Hartford, Connecticut, according to police department data and local reports.

Six of the nine cities on this list have Democratic mayors. San Antonio has an Independent mayor, and Colorado Springs and Aurora have Republican mayors.