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Wednesday, Nov. 4, 2020

Did the US see an increase in murders during the first half of 2020?

Lauralei Singsank, Gigafact
yes

According to FBI data, the number of murders and non-negligent manslaughters increased by 14.8% in the first six months of 2020 from the same period a year earlier. For all of 2019, the FBI reported 14,185 murders in the U.S., the third consecutive annual decline. If the reported 2020 increase continues through the second half, the annual murder total would be the highest since the late 1990s.

Aggravated assaults were up 4.6% compared to January-June 2019, although all other forms of violent crime decreased.

A private research group, looking at data from 27 U.S. cities, found a 53% year-on-year rise in homicides between June and August. The group said rates were subdued until the civil unrest following the police killing of George Floyd in Minneapolis, and called for pursuing proved crime-control strategies while both subduing the coronavirus pandemic and enacting police reforms.

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