The New Orleans Police Department (NOPD) announced today that violent crime in the city has continued to drop during the first quarter of 2019, including a 46-percent drop in murders, a 17 percent drop in non-fatal shootings, and an 8 percent drop in armed robberies.
According to NOPD Superintendent Shaun Ferguson said that the NOPD remains committed to reducing violent crime. “While we know there’s still plenty of work to be done, I truly believe the men and women of the NOPD are making substantial progress in our ongoing efforts to make New Orleans safer,” Ferguson said.
The 1st Quarter Violent Crime Numbers reported by NOPD:
- Murders down 46 percent from 50 in Q1 2018 to 27 in Q1 2019
- Non-fatal shootings down 17 percent from 54 in Q1 2018 to 45 in Q1 2019
- Armed robberies down 8 percent from 118 in Q1 2018 to 108 in Q1 2019
- Simple robberies down 26 percent from 74 in Q1 2018 to 55 in Q1 2019
Another focus of the NOPD this quarter has been removing illegal guns from the city streets. So far in 2019, NOPD officers have seized 568 illegal guns compared to 488 during the first quarter of 2018.
“Reducing overall gun violence is a top priority for myself, our Mayor, and this department,” Ferguson said. “We must remain aggressive in our approach to finding and removing these illegal firearms to further reduce these types of crimes in our community.”
Jenn Bentley is a writer and editor originally from Cadiz, Kentucky. Her writing has been featured in publications such as The Examiner, The High Tech Society, FansShare, Yahoo News, and others. When she’s not writing or editing, Jenn spends her time raising money for Extra Life and advocating for autism awareness.
