Inside a conference room at University Medical Center, a group of New Orleans police captains and health officials meets weekly to review the latest data on gun violence and discuss responses to recent shootings.
Grim by nature, the meetings of the Gun Retaliation Interruption Program, or GRIP, have been more upbeat of late. That's because the shootings and killings are fewer now — much fewer.
New Orleans saw its murder rate plummet by more than 40% in the first half of this year, a drop that’s among the largest seen in the nation’s most murderous cities, according to data collected by AH Datalytics.
“This isn’t just New Orleans tracking the national trend,” said Michael Hecht of GNO, Inc, who helped organized the NOLA Coalition, a group of business and civil groups engaged on public safety issues in the city. “We are improving about twice as fast as the U.S. average.”
Murders plunged nationwide in 2023 following a bloody 2022, after which New Orleans stood as the nation's murder capital among U.S. cities. It took the downward trend longer to show up in New Orleans than elsewhere, but the decline since has been swift. The 67 murders NOPD recorded through June 22 represents one of the lowest year-to-date totals the city has seen in decades.
Non-fatal shootings saw a similar decrease. The 165 people injured by gunfire in New Orleans this year marks a 37% drop from last year.
The data suggest New Orleans may be on a pace now similar to 2019, when the 121 murders murders in the city marked a 47-year low.
“The steady state of decline (in New Orleans) suggests that efforts being made by the city in these past years seem to be working,” said Anita Raj, a professor of public health at Tulane University and executive director of its Newcomb Institute.
'An actual response'
The city began turning the corner almost exactly a year ago, and the number of murders and shootings fell dramatically through the end of 2023.
The decline was already underway when Anne Kirkpatrick arrived as NOPD superintendent last fall. It began nearly half a year before Gov. Jeff Landry took office, convened a special legislative session on crime and launched a new Louisiana State Police unit, Troop Nola, dedicated to fighting it in the Crescent City.
To some stakeholders in New Orleans, the steep reductions signal traction with a fresh collective of public and private agencies as the city weathered a historic surge in shooting and killing that began in 2020.
“There's more of a coordinated ecosystem that’s being built out, that’s been spearheaded by the (city) health department,” said Julia Fleckman, associate director for Tulane’s Violence Prevention Institute.
Fleckman cited new programs led by health officials and law enforcement to staunch retaliation, including youth training and employment, and more support for mental and behavioral health. “Some of the programs maybe existed but didn’t have enough funding,” she said.
UMC and Children’s Hospital also have invested in reaching youth in schools and with mediation and intervention programs.
In a statement, NOPD credited its officers, civilian hires and partnerships with other law enforcement agencies for the gains on violent crime. The department also said the meetings at UMC, where officials identify "clusters" of shootings to head off retaliatory violence, also have contributed to the declines.
Last week, authorities touted a recent collaboration of 18 federal, state and local agencies that netted the arrests of 76 targeted violent offenders with outstanding warrants. The NOPD also credited shared intelligence among those agencies.
Fleckman said the focus on shootings and killings, and preventing retaliation, from a number of angles may be having a ripple effect.
“People are probably a little more afraid, because there’s an actual response,” she said.
Raj says researchers are still unpacking the impacts of all these approaches, among other factors that may have spurred significant reductions in most categories of violent crime in New Orleans.
“We are seeing the city’s improvements in levels of education, employment, to some degree standard of living, and I suspect there are elements of economic improvement and stability, as well as how the criminal justice system is being managed,” Raj said.
Other crimes fall
The crime numbers mostly tell a promising story.
Armed robberies fell by half compared to the first half of 2023, a particularly notable decline after police last year reported the fewest armed robberies in four years. Carjackings have similarly fallen. The 59 reported so far this year are less than half the tally of carjackings at this point in 2023, also after declines from the previous year.
Most serious non-violent crimes have dropped as well. The main exceptions were reported thefts and shoplifting, which together have risen by about 14%.
A major exception to the falling violent crime figures: NOPD has investigated about as many rapes as it did last year.
To Raj, those figures indicate an area of concern. She said she would expect to see rapes fall alongside other violent crimes.
“The news is good with respect to how violent crime is being managed in New Orleans’ public spheres,” she said. “It may be that the types of violence happening in private spheres—homes and relationships—are a tougher nut to crack.”
'Put something viable back'
Daphine Barnes, executive director of economic mobility at GNO Inc., pointed to District Attorney Jason Williams’ office and its use of a technology called "risk-terrain modeling."
Barnes said it's not just for identifying criminal hotspots and shuttering problem businesses within them, as Williams' office has done twice. It also helps “triage” resources for people in areas hardest-hit by crime, she said.
Barnes pointed to a high-crime tract in the 1200 block of North Claiborne Avenue, once anchored by a sprawling homeless encampment and a derelict 24-hour tire shop. That area is now a relatively blank slate, after Williams' office moved to seize the tire shop, and a city sweep cleared the encampment.
“If you take something out, you need to put something viable back into that community,” said Barnes, a former high-school chemistry teacher. “You need to be restorative, not just punitive.”
Next month, Barnes plans to spearhead a neighborhood summit in the block, aiming to connect residents with resources from organizations under the NOLA Coalition umbrella, such as first-time homebuyer courses and adult education. Barnes said the next stop for a summit will be Hardin Park in the 7th Ward.
“Our goal is to reach the entire city within the year,” she said. “We are going to the points where we are most needed."
Workforce engagement, education and mental health and youth services are not just key to preventing future crime surges, she said, but critical to building generational wealth and restoring Black neighborhoods in New Orleans.
"If someone is making a livable wage and has the opportunity to grow within their neighborhood," Barnes said, "are they the ones pulling your car door handles? I think not."
John Simerman contributed to this story.
