City of Milwaukee breaks homicide record for 3rd straight year

 

MILWAUKEE (CBS 58) -- Milwaukee set a record in 2022, and it's a record no city ever wants. 

According to MPD crime stats, there have been 194 homicides in the city so far this year, meaning 2022 will have the most homicides in one year in the city's history.

The city has broken the homicide record for three straight years. 

We spoke with Police Chief Jeffrey Norman and Mayor Cavalier Johnson, who say there are not a lot of easy answers.

There were 190 homicides in 2020, 193 in 2021, and on Saturday, Nov. 19, Milwaukee reached 194 for this year. We still have more than a month to go.

Mayor Johnson says cities across the country are dealing with this same problem, and he spoke about bringing family-supporting jobs to Milwaukee which would stabilize families and neighborhoods. 

Chief Norman sounded optimism about the partnerships in the city, from the Office of Violence Prevention to the Sojourner Family Peace Center. He thinks collaboration between city departments and city organizations will start to show results.

"Because no one entity, no one person, whether it's the mayor or myself or a team that we represent, can do it alone," Chief Norman said. "So, while we still have our challenges, we do still have a lot of things to be thankful for."

Chief Norman says he is also seeing more engagement from the public. Norman says people are starting to understand that there are no bystanders when it comes to public safety.