President Donald Trump announced Monday he’s taking decisive action to reduce crime in Washington, D.C., drawing attention to violent crime rates not only in the nation’s capital, but in major cities across the U.S.
“We have other cities that are very bad—New York has a problem, and then you have, of course, Baltimore and Oakland,” Trump said at a White House press conference Monday morning to announce that the federal government is taking control of the D.C. police in an effort to crack down on crime.
“We’re not going to lose our cities over this,” Trump said, referring to crime.
Efforts to clean up cities in the U.S. will “go further” than the nation’s capital, but “we’re starting very strongly with D.C.,” he said.
In 2024, there were 187 homicides in the District of Columbia, down from 274 in 2023. If Washington. D.C., were a state, it would have the highest murder rate, based on population, of any state in the nation. Going by raw numbers alone, a number of U.S. cities experienced more homicides than the District in 2024.
The FBI reports violent crime fell 4.5% across the U.S. in 2024, compared with 2023, and many cities are seeming the same positive pattern, but some cities across the U.S. continue to experience hundreds of killings every year.
In 2024, there were 382 homicides and nonnegligent manslaughter incidents in New York City, according to city data.
In June, New York City Mayor Eric Adams announced the Big Apple had seen the “lowest number of shootings and homicides in recorded history” between January to May of this year. He added, however, it is not enough for crime to decline, that citizens should also “feel safer.”
The Citizens Budget Commission, a New York City-based bipartisan think tank, reported in June that just “42% of New Yorkers rate public safety in their neighborhood excellent or good, down from 50% in 2017.”
In 2024, there were 573 homicides in Chicago, down from 620 the previous year, an 8% decline according to the Chicago Police Department.
“This year, the Chicago Police Department continued to drive down violent crime, while focusing on the victims affected by the trauma of these crimes,” police Superintendent Larry Snelling said in January.
In Baltimore, there were 201 homicides in 2024, a 23% decline from 261 in 2023, according to the Baltimore Police Department.
“Creating a safer Baltimore remains our top priority, and I want to thank the dedicated men and women of the Baltimore Police Department for their intentional and relentless efforts to reduce crime in our great city,” Richard Worley, the city’s police commissioner said in January.
“We know very well that there is much more work to be done in building trust with our communities, and we plan to build on these successes in partnership with all our stakeholders and community partners,” Worley added.
Detroit recorded 203 homicides in 2024, marking a 19% decline from the previous year, according to the Detroit Police Department.
Homicides in Philadelphia fell to 269 in 2024 from 410 the previous year and the lowest homicide rate for the City of Brotherly Love since 2014.