Los Angeles

Murder increase in Los Angeles appears to slow

The latest crime data released by the LAPD shows a much smaller increase in the number of murders in 2024, but most data on violence still unavailable

NBC Universal, Inc.

The LAPD reported Friday that, as of the end of April, the city's rise in the number of murders in 2024 continued to decline and, as of April 27, was only 4.2% above the number of murders reported at this time in 2023.

No information was available from the police department on the number of shootings, the number of victims shot, the numbers of rapes, robberies, serious assaults, burglaries or thefts in 2024.

Chief Dominic Choi said earlier this week the spike in street violence that occurred earlier this year, that at one time drove LA's murder rate 30% above last year's, has been in a steady decline since mid-March.

The LAPD has said the lack of data is due to the department's efforts to update its crime reporting database, called the records management system, and promised that publicly accessible information would be fully restored, "no later than the fourth quarter, 2024."

NBC4's I-Team often used this information to provide an independent analysis of crime trends and events.

"The Los Angeles Police Department is committed to data transparency and will continue to publish as much information as possible," a police spokesperson emailed last month.

The new records system promises to deliver much better information, some accessible to the public, when it's online later this year, and the upgrade will be compatible with the FBI's new national crime reporting system, called NIBRS.

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