Raleigh sets record high in homicides as mayor moves to make city ‘inclusive’ and ‘equitable’

According to local news, Raleigh Police Chief Estella Patterson said on Wednesday, "When we see 14- and 15-year-olds committing crimes, we have to have groups of people who can really connect with them and be able to turn that around and prevent them from going to a life of crime."

The Democrat-led city saw 49 homicides in 2022, up from 33 in 2021. There were 27 homicides in 2020 and 29 in 2019, the year Mary-Ann Baldwin became mayor after serving on the city council since 2007.

On her website, Baldwin said her priority, "is to make Raleigh an inclusive, welcoming, and equitable city," and that she wants Raleigh to be a "city with affordable housing for all."

Raleigh's murder rate in 2022 is the highest number ever recorded since the FBI started keeping statistics on the city's murders in 1995.

According to Axios, overall violent crime In Raleigh increased by 18 percent between 2020 and 2021.

Police Chief Patterson focused on teenagers and noted that 30 aggravated assaults in the city were committed by teenagers who were armed. 386 guns were stolen from motor vehicles in the city in 2022.

"I will continue to stress that we must continue to devote every and all resources to prevent youth violence," Patterson said. "I am asking community groups and nonprofits who may be listening to this crime briefing to consider partnering with RPD, if you are not already, to provide gun awareness and anger management training for our youth."

The Raleigh Police Department currently has 115 vacancies or roughly 15 percent of its workforce.