Nationally, homicides are beginning to trend downward, back toward pre-COVID-19 pandemic levels. But Louisville is in the minority of major U.S. cities where homicides are actually on the rise.
So far this year, Louisville has experienced 119 homicides, an increase of 5% compared to this time last year. Some other violent crimes are also up year-over-year, including car jacking. At a press conference Wednesday, LMPD officials noted that non-fatal shootings are down about 7% so far, with 291 shootings since the start of 2024.
LMPD Chief Paul Humphrey said Louisville has “a serious crime issue,” and addressing it is going to require effort from all of city government.
“We want to make sure we get everyone on board, this isn’t just this particular unit or this particular person that’s doing this, but it’s all of us that have to combat this issue,” he said.
Humphrey officially took over the position of Louisville’s top cop last week. During his swearing-in ceremony, he unveiled a preliminary strategic crime plan that aims to get city departments, nonprofits and residents involved in alleviating violent crime.
In the short-term, Humphrey said LMPD will utilize “data responsive policing” to ensure department resources are focused on high-crime areas. He said officers are also expected to be more proactive in those neighborhoods.
“We need officers out there stopping people and locking bad guys up,” he said during the ceremony. “We also need officers that are out there making community contacts. Opportunities to interact with the public are so vital to public safety.”
Working with other city agencies, Humphrey said they will tackle “the root causes” of violent crime.
“This is looking at vacant houses, this is making sure that those abandoned cars get cleaned up, that the graffiti is cleaned up, that we are meeting the needs of people where they are,” he said. “We are changing and reforming neighborhoods at their core.”
Humphrey’s longer term vision for addressing violent crime also includes targeting felons in possession of firearms to get guns off the streets.
There will also be changes to the city’s group violence intervention program, which was launched in 2020. The program brings residents involved in gangs to the table with law enforcement and organizations that can provide job training, housing assistance and other resources.
The person involved in gang violence is offered a path out of that lifestyle, but if they don’t take it there’s a promise to crack down.
At Thursday’s press conference, Humphrey said LMPD is working on making the stick part of that ‘carrot and stick’ approach stronger.
“You’ve been put on notice that we know you are highly likely to be the next shooter or the next victim,” he said. “We’ve already given you a second chance, third chance, fourth chance, we’re going to take your chances away at this point.”
Humphrey said LMPD is already working on “a couple indictments” for individuals that were involved in the group violence intervention program, but chose not to take their help.
All of these new changes and initiatives, he said, will take time to produce results. They aren’t meant to lead to a two-week drop in homicides. They’re a long-term vision for how to get the city back on the right track.
“I know everybody wants to see this two-week, 28-day turnaround, just this drastic change,” Humphrey said. “Look, we have a serious crime issue.”
He said he thinks part of what the policing profession has gotten wrong is a focus on task forces and temporary fixes, rather than long-term solutions.
