Homicide Is Soaring In The Akron Metro Area

Cleveland OH

11 October, 2021

12:26 PM

Description

By Samuel Stebbins, 24/7 Wall St. - Cleveland 2021-10-10 Homicides are rising at a record pace in the United States. According to a recent FBI report, there were a total of 21,570 murders committed in 2020, the most of any year in the last two and a half decades and up nearly 30% from 2019 — the largest annual increase on record. The spike in homicides came during a tumultuous year. The COVID-19 pandemic shut down schools and left millions of Americans out of work. Footage of the murder of George Floyd by a Minneapolis police officer rattled confidence in American law enforcement and sparked nationwide protests. Firearms sales soared, and tens of millions of new guns proliferated across communities nationwide. Here is a look at the states where gun sales are surging. Some experts speculate that each of these factors likely played a role in rising homicide rates nationwide. While it may be years before the precise causal factors are identified, many U.S. cities are bearing the brunt of the rash of deadly violence. In metropolitan areas across the country, the increase in homicides last year eclipsed the national surge — in some cases, many times over. Akron is one of several Ohio metro areas to report a surge in homicides. A total of 55 murders were reported in Akron in 2020, up 66.7% from 33 in 2019. Currently, the metro area's homicide rate of 7.8 incidents per 100,000 people is considerably higher than the national rate of 6.5 per 100,000. Local law enforcement say that feuds playing out on social media are fueling the surge in violence. So far this year, Akron police have taken nearly 600 guns off the street. But still, the homicide rate shows no sign of slowing in the city in 2021. All data in this story is at the metro area level from the FBI. Only metro areas with populations of at least 250,000 residents and at least one homicide in 2019 were considered.     Can't see the article's infographic? Click here to view the original story.This story was originally published by 24/7 Wall St., a news organization that produces real-time business commentary and data-driven reporting for state and local markets across the country.