DETROIT (WWJ) – Earlier this year Detroit police and federal officials took aim at violent crime across the city, specifically targeting two of the most violent areas of the city – the 8th and 9th Precincts.
Officials on Wednesday released the summer results of the One Detroit Partnership initiative, having seen a nearly 20% drop in violent crime in the 8th Precinct on the city’s northwest side from Memorial Day to Labor Day.
Meanwhile in the 9th, on the northeast side, there was an 11% decrease. Overall, the city saw a 6% decrease in violent crimes in that period, according to Detroit Police Chief James White.
Detailing the numbers Wednesday, White called it a step in the right direction, but said there’s still a lot of work ahead to make the city safer.
“I do believe that Detroit has turned a corner.on violence,” White said. “We have a lot of work to do, no one’s taking a victory lap right now. There’s just still too much violence in this community.”
But he says One Detroit “certainly supports the fact that we’re moving in the right direction.” The partnership brings together state, local, and federal agencies to help address violent crime and used a summer policing plan featuring three components – prevention, enforcement and reentry.
The summer crackdown comes in the midst of a larger push to drive down crime across one of the country’s most violent cities. And so far this year, according to White, it’s working.
From the start of January through the end of August, both homicides and non-fatal shootings are down 9%. In total, there have been 20 fewer murder victims compared to that time frame in 2022.
“We’re very happy about those results,” said Dawn Ison, U.S. Attorney for the Eastern District of Michigan. “It’s 20 fewer victims. And that matters. That counts. That counts for families, that counts for the victims. So I want everyone to know that if it's one or 21, one or 1,001, every body counts.”