The rate of violent crime in Washington, D.Chas reached its lowest level in 30 years, according to the US Attorney’s Office.
Violent crime in the District is down 35% year over year, Mathew M. Graves, U.S. Attorney for the District of Columbia, said Friday. There have been 3,388 incidents so far in 2024, compared to 5,215 incidents in 2023.
Crimes that saw a significant decrease this year included homicide (down 30%), sexual abuse (down 22%), assault with a dangerous weapon (down 27%), robbery (down 8%) and Burglary (minus 8%).
“In my view, there is no doubt that the most effective thing we do when it comes to violent crime is actually targeting drivers of gun violence,” Graves said Fox 5 DC. “It’s even more important to find out in our community who is really driving the violence and hold them accountable for specific crimes so they can be taken off the streets before they commit the next crime.”
Man arrested for fare evasion on DC Metrobus found with loaded shotgun: Police
According to the U.S. Attorney’s Office, violent crime rates in Washington, D.C. have reached their lowest level in 30 years. (Celal Gunes/Anadolu Agency via Getty Images)
Graves said the data shows the drivers of Violent crime This includes “several hundred people across the city.”
“Many of them are associated with… what we call ‘crews’ in the district; “Organizations of individuals, typically located in the neighborhood or block in which they grew up, are involved in a number of different crimes,” he said.
“Their activities are in some ways directly linked to violence. In other cases, the activities they engage in, fueling open-air drug markets, are magnets for violence,” he added. “Prosecuting the people who are truly responsible for some of the violent crime is an incredibly effective strategy for bringing the numbers down.”
Graves said law enforcement is not the only way to reduce crime.
Violent crime in the county is down 35% year-over-year. (Tom Williams/CQ-Roll Call, Inc via Getty Images)
“These are often deep-rooted problems, rooted in poverty, lack of services, health problems and educational problems,” he said. “We can influence these numbers. We can take violence off the streets. We can try to stop other people from being drivers of gun violence. But if there are unresolved things, psychological problems, lack of economic opportunities, then there will be more drivers.
Graves attributed the drop in violent crime to his office’s collaboration with the City Police Department The goal is to target the small number of people who engage in violent crime in the county.
“There are relatively few people who cause violence in our community,” he said said WTOP. “And what we’ve done over the last two years really targets the individuals – these groups of individuals – that are driving violence.”
There have been 3,388 violent crime incidents so far in 2024, compared to 5,215 incidents in 2023. (WTTG)
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Local leaders also cite the Secure DC Omnibus Act and other factors such as increased officer visibility, technology upgrades and ensuring students attend classes.
Graves still says more needs to be done to combat the number of illegal firearms in the county.
“We have a lot more illegal firearms in our community today than we did 15 years ago,” he said. “You have to think of it like a virus. The more virus there is in the community, the more people get sick.”
