Image by Steve Buissinne from Pixabay
Detective Sergeant Tyrone L. Booth, intelligence bureau/public information officer for the city of Flint Police Department, recently pointed out our community is not excluded from the unprecedented situation many cities find themselves in at this time. Booth said there are several contributing factors causing crime across the country to increase.
“It is an unfortunate reality that violent crime is increasing throughout our state and nation,” he said.
As of April 21, 2021, there had been 73 non-fatal shootings reported in the city of Flint in 2021. This compares to 31 non-fatal shootings through the same date in 2020. The number of shootings this year reflects a continuation of the increase in crime experienced throughout Michigan and the United States last year and associated with COVID-19.
“We believe that one shooting or homicide is far too many and unacceptable in our society,” Booth said. “Therefore, our department will continue to investigate these heinous crimes to bring those responsible to justice.”
The rate of shootings from January through April 2020 in Flint was disproportionately lower compared to the rest of the year. In fact, the rate of non-fatal shootings in 2020 more than doubled after the first four months of 2020.
“Non-fatal shootings are a form of aggravated assault. Looking at this data for other communities, we can also see that they, too, are continuing to experience this COVID-related spike in crime. The city of Saginaw reports more than 90 aggravated assaults through mid-April, and the city of Detroit reports more than 2,300.”
These increases also are reflected in homicide numbers. Last year, the city of Flint experienced a 32% increase in homicides. That also reflects the statewide and nationwide increases. Chicago is up 50%. New York City is up 40%. The same is true in Michigan with Grand Rapids and Saginaw, reporting double and triple the number of homicides.
“Our agency knows that we cannot fight this fight alone. We are continually seeking community partners and asking the citizens of Flint to help us make Flint a safer place.”
