The number of homicides in Chicago in 2020 was 278 above the previous year’s total of 502, representing a 55 percent increase, according to a new study from the nonpartisan Council on Criminal Justice.
The study, titled “Pandemic, Social, Unrest and Crime in U.S. Cities,” examined crime statistics covering 34 large American cities. Among those cities, Chicago had the ninth largest jump in homicides during a year dominated by the COVID-19 pandemic.
The average homicide rate increase over that time period among all the cities providing data was 29.6 percent, according to the analysis. Single-digit increases in aggravated assaults, gun assaults and motor vehicle theft were also recorded by researchers studying crime statistics for the cities.
The increase in most of the 34 cities’ homicide rates – from 150 percent in Chula Vista, Calif., to 6 percent in Jacksonville, Fla. – led the authors to call for urgent public policy actions. To achieve more peaceful coexistence in the U.S. cities, confidence in law enforcement and the justice system needs to rise, the virus must be defeated and strategies to reduce violence need to be implemented, the authors concluded.
Even with the higher homicide statistics, the rates remain below historic highs, they said.
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Homicide Rate Changes in U.S. Cities
| Rank | City | State / Territory | % Change in Homicides 2019-2020 |
| 1 | Chula Vista | Calif. | 150% |
| 2 | Chandler | Ariz. | 133% |
| 3 | Madison | Wis. | 100% |
| 4 | Milwaukee | Wis. | 85% |
| 5 | Lincoln | Neb. | 80% |
| 6 | Omaha | Neb. | 73% |
| 7 | Seattle | Wash. | 63% |
| 8 | Louisville | Ky. | 61% |
| 9 | Chicago | Ill. | 55% |
| 10 | Memphis | Tenn. | 48% |
| 11 | Austin | Texas | 48% |
| 12 | Phoenix | Ariz. | 46% |
| 13 | New York | N.Y. | 43% |
| 14 | Pittsburgh | Penn. | 38% |
| 15 | Atlanta | Ga. | 38% |
| 16 | Los Angeles | Calif. | 37% |
| 17 | St. Louis | Mo. | 35% |
| 18 | Nashville | Tenn. | 32% |
| 19 | Buffalo | N.Y. | 30% |
| 20 | Riverside | Calif. | 29% |
| 21 | Arlington | Va. | 29% |
| 22 | Norfolk | Va. | 29% |
| 23 | Philadelphia | Penn. | 27% |
| 24 | Denver | Colo. | 25% |
| 25 | Detroit | Mich. | 19% |
| 26 | Washington | D.C. | 14% |
| 27 | Lexington | Ky. | 13% |
| 28 | San Diego | Calif. | 8% |
| 29 | Jacksonville | Fla. | 6% |
| 30 | Long Beach | Calif. | 0% |
| 31 | Raleigh | N.C. | -4% |
| 32 | Baltimore | Md. | -4% |
| 33 | St. Petersburg | Fla. | -25% |
| 34 | Virginia Beach | Va. | -50% |
Average Crime Rate Changes in the 34 Cities
| Crime | Average % Change (2020 vs. 2019) in Surveyed Cities |
| Homicides | 29.6% |
| Aggravated Assaults | 6.4% |
| Gun Assaults | 7.9% |
| Domestic Violence | -1.7% |
| Robbery | -9.0% |
| Residential Burglary | -24.0% |
| Nonresidential Burglary | -6.6% |
| Larceny | -16.0% |
| Motor Vehicle Theft | 12.9% |
| Drug Offenses | -30.0% |
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