<mediadc-video-embed data-state="{"cms.site.owner":{"_ref":"00000161-3486-d333-a9e9-76c6fbf30000","_type":"00000161-3461-dd66-ab67-fd6b93390000"},"cms.content.publishDate":1656329800402,"cms.content.publishUser":{"_ref":"00000179-379a-dbb2-a7fd-bfda8bfc0000","_type":"00000161-3461-dd66-ab67-fd6b933a0007"},"cms.content.updateDate":1656329800402,"cms.content.updateUser":{"_ref":"00000179-379a-dbb2-a7fd-bfda8bfc0000","_type":"00000161-3461-dd66-ab67-fd6b933a0007"},"rawHtml":"
var _bp = _bp||[]; _bp.push({ "div": "Brid_56329651", "obj": {"id":"27789","width":"16","height":"9","video":"1039987"} }); ","_id":"00000181-a4f3-d447-ad8b-f4f305740000","_type":"2f5a8339-a89a-3738-9cd2-3ddf0c8da574"}”>Video EmbedFour people were shot and killed in Washington, D.C., over the weekend, marking a grim milestone as the district surpassed 100 homicides in 2022 — the earliest the city has recorded that many killings in almost 20 years.
Two teenagers were among those who died this weekend, with a 15-year-old being shot on Saturday in the Shaw neighborhood in northwest Washington and an 18-year-old being shot in the 800 block of Quincy Street in northwest Washington on Sunday. Two other teenagers were shot in the Sunday incident but did not sustain life-threatening injuries, according to police.
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A 45-year-old man also died Saturday evening in the 1700 block of West Virginia Avenue in northeast Washington. The next day, a 23-year-old was shot and killed, and another man was injured in the same incident, police said.
The string of killings brings the district’s reported homicides to at least 104 so far this year, with the city surpassing the 100-homicide threshold on Friday. The grim milestone is the earliest Washington has reached that mark since 2003 and comes four months earlier than the average date the district has reached 100 killings, which over the last decade has been Oct. 25.
The city’s homicide rate is up 16% compared to last year, which saw a record number of homicides with 226 killings, according to police data. Robberies are up 32%, violent crime overall has increased by 11%, and there have been at least 100 carjackings so far this year.
Addressing this rise in crime has been a priority for several city candidates throughout their midterm election campaigns, especially because it has become a top concern among district voters over the last few years. However, some law enforcement officers have largely placed the blame on the city government and recent efforts over the years to divert resources from the Metropolitan Police Department to other public safety initiatives.
“This increase in crime is due to the D.C. Council’s implementation of misguided ‘police reform’ legislation,” D.C. Police Union Chairman Gregg Pemberton said. “The Council’s actions have had a chilling effect on professional and responsible policing.”
The D.C. Council previously slashed the city’s police budget by $15 million in 2020, sparring with Mayor Muriel Bowser in the years following to increase the number of uniformed officers and increase the force’s spending.
As a result, Pemberton argued it has led to a massive decrease in MPD officers. More than 500 police officers have either retired or resigned over the last few years, bringing the number of officers in the police department to 3,400 officers — the lowest in decades, according to Pemberton.
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“Other major cities that have passed similar legislation have also experienced the mass departure of police personnel and, as a result, surges in crime,” he said. “While the Council does its business inside a building protected by armed security, police officers in the real world are unable to do the impactful and necessary tasks needed to protect the public and apprehend violent criminals.”
The Council shaved off about $6 million from Bowser’s budget proposal for the MPD this year, allocating almost $24 million to the city for recruitment strategies for law enforcement officers. Bowser initially requested $30 million in her budget proposal to retain and recruit more officers over the next year, aiming to have 4,000 uniformed police officers sworn in over the next 10 years.
