The city of New Haven is offering their latest crime data for the city to mark the end of 2024, and look ahead to 2025. The city overall, continues to see a drop in crime.
“We have been moving in the right direction in every category,” said Police Chief Karl Jacobson.
According to Police data, homicides are down nearly 30% in the Elm City since 2020. 14 people were killed in 2024. Non-fatal shootings are also down, by about 26% in the same time frame.
Police say those statistics are tricky; the difference between a non-fatal shooting and homicide can be inches. A fast response time, quick trip to the hospital, or location of bullet can be the difference. The number they instead give more weight is how many times triggers are pulled. Confirmed shots fired incidents were down nearly 34% in 2024 compared to 2020.
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“That’s the number we want to see go down, that’s the number that will take us forward into the future and get us better gun violence numbers,” said Jacobson.
Car thefts continue to be tricky, according to city officials. Though down since 2023, they still remain 43% higher than back in 2020. 2023 saw a big spike in car thefts in the Elm City.
“We are still learning about what is the best strategy and how frankly do we balance that accountability that some of the kids need coupled with the supports they need to make sure when they are held accountable, they have another option and are set back on the right track,” Mayor Justin Elicker said about the ongoing and emerging problem of car thefts.
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The mayor noted the problem of car thefts is a high priority, and there is inter-agency work with other towns and cities to combat it.
In the past, he has noted there is also work to be done at the state level to curb the trend of stolen cars.
As the police department kicks off 2025, they remain optimistic about the work being done. They anticipate staffing numbers will rise following a renewed and accepted police union contract with the city. Also increasing: the presence of technology in policing to allow officers to narrow their focus. Technology like additional cameras to aid in solving crime, red light and speed cameras awaiting approval by the CT DOT, and AI-written police reports they are testing.
“We are really trying to do what we can to free up officers and give them more time to do what they need to do,” said Jacobson.
For the drop, Chief Jacobson credits inter-agency collaboration within the city, an emphasis on transparency, and partnerships and relationships with community groups.
He said that model will be crucial as the city wrestles with a higher percentage of younger individuals involving themselves in violence in the city.
“To remain working together and keep the narrative open for what youth might need what people in the city might need and to bring those ideas back,” said the chief.
He and the mayor noted there is a prevailing narrative they hear often that within the city: there is nothing for kids to do outside of school hours. They disagree, pointing to the Police Athletic League - and other programming they want to grow and emphasize in 2025 - to keep young people from engaging in violence.
New Haven mirrors trends seen around the country, and around Connecticut according to Michael Lawlor with the University of New Haven.
“It’s now gradually trending downward,” said Lawlor.
Statistics on violent crime are creeping back toward pre-pandemic lows, which was to be expected after spiking following 2020.
But Lawlor said credit goes to the work police and community members are doing in building trust as the law enforcement landscape evolves.
“The more trust there is, the better the relations, the less crime there is going to be,” said Lawlor.
Chief Jacobson noted he is grateful progress continues to be made and intends to keep New Haven moving in the same direction.
“We went to 9 less funerals this year, 9 less people had to die in this city, and that’s important, I want to go to even less funerals this year, I want to make sure we go to less funerals next year,” he said.
