The decrease in killings and carjackings being celebrated by D.C. Mayor Muriel Bowser and the Metropolitan Police Department has yet to sink in with Washingtonians who are jaded from the years-long surge in violence.

Police data show that major crimes have plummeted 35% from last year’s spike in deadly shootings and muggings that rocked the District and prompted threats from Congress to revoke the federal city’s semi-autonomous governing structure.

Metropolitan Police Chief Pamela A. Smith noted that robberies and weapons assaults have fallen below 2019 levels — a commonly referenced baseline for law enforcement agencies nationwide after George Floyd’s 2020 police-involved murder in Minneapolis brought on crime waves in major American cities.

But the good news is not resonating among those who walk past crime-scene tape near their homes or are confronted with visible signs of disorder while moving about the city.

“When you start so high, can you really be certain that crime is changing for the better?” said Emma, a 32-year-old lawyer in the District who asked for her last name not to be used.

She said she’s moving out of the Shaw neighborhood to a new home in Capitol Hill to avoid the burglaries she’s been repeatedly victimized by.

Emma said she’s had five break-ins at different homes she’s lived in throughout the Northwest neighborhood since 2016. Thieves have taken four laptops, two iPads and three new bicycles — including one she had never ridden before — during the heists, she said.

The most recent burglary, which was one of two Emma said she experienced in 2023, sounded more like a robbery.

Her then-boyfriend came home to walk her dog one afternoon when she said a man pretending to do lawn work pulled a gun on him. The thief went inside and raided her house moments later.

“He actually moved to London over his own issues with local crime,” Emma said.

With regard to police statistics, she said she believes the kind of random crimes that terrorized tourists and bystanders last year have died down. But she’s not convinced targeted shootings have ebbed.

MPD data shared during a public safety briefing last week showed every major crime is below where it was at this point in 2023. Crimes that remain above 2019 levels are homicides (up 15%), carjackings (up 200%) and car thefts (up 135%).

At the briefing, Chief Smith highlighted initiatives aimed at driving down homicides, robberies and illegal guns as a key to cutting down on violence in the District. She also touted the opening of the Real-Time Crime Center — a large surveillance hub in MPD’s headquarters that uses surveillance cameras around the District to help track down suspects.

Ms. Bowser highlighted the Secure D.C. law that has given judges greater discretion to hold criminals without bail and turned victimless shootings into a felony to curb unlawful firearm possession in the city.

Lindsey Appiah, deputy mayor for public safety, stressed that making sure residents feel safe is as big of a priority as lowering the crime numbers updated daily on a police dashboard.

Restoring order in Chinatown, the home of Capital One Arena in downtown, was a focus as the District sought to address the unease that permeated in high-traffic areas.

But those visiting the annual Holiday Market just a block away from the stadium are struggling to see a difference.

A Logan Circle resident who asked not to be identified said he doesn’t notice any change in crime from this year to last year.

He admitted that his friends are avid crime watchers in the city, so that may be shading his perception. But he doesn’t feel as if the sharp drop in statistics reflects what he sees in his day to day.

It’s a challenge the mayor expressed frustration with during the safety briefing, where she felt her administration was in a lose-lose situation when it comes to winning the hearts and minds of the public.

“When crime goes up, blame the mayor. When crime goes down, certainly the things that we put in place couldn’t have anything to do with that,” Ms. Bowser said sarcastically at the Dec. 9 press event.

Some residents have started to notice a change in the city.

Kate, who moved to the District from Philadelphia last spring, said two shootings erupted near her Petworth home when she first arrived in the nation’s capital.

In the months since then, however, the 23-year-old said she’s barely noticed any crime in her neighborhood.

But the positive trend in crime is not without its shocking incidents.

A homeless man was arrested last week in Northwest after police said he kidnapped and battered a Maryland man he was holding against his will.

The victim told police that the suspect, 33-year-old Davon Patterson, was trying to extort money out of him. Eleven other people were arrested on trespassing charges at the home on the 4000 block of Kansas Avenue NW.

And Petco will close its location in Columbia Heights next month after struggling to crack down on shoplifting. Petco’s closure comes less than a year after a CVS pharmacy across the street was forced to shutter after thieves ransacked the store so often its shelves were frequently barren.

Still, police are encouraged they can build off this year’s improvements and make last year’s crime spike seem like a distant memory.

“We will continue to fight crime without stopping, we will continue to fight crime without giving up, and in this city, we will continue to fight crime without losing motivation,” Chief Smith said.

• Matt Delaney can be reached at mdelaney@washingtontimes.com.