New Orleans Murder Rate Gets Even Worse
Homicides Up In Big Easy, D.C. In 2007 But NYC On Track To Record Fewest Murders In 44 Years
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New Orleans has been submerged by a crime wave ever since the waters of Hurricane Katrina receded. (CBS)
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New Orleans - the bloodiest city in the country in 2006 - got even bloodier in 2007, with 209 murders. That was 48 more than in 2006, when its 161 homicides put its murder rate far ahead of even such deadly cities as Gary, Indiana, and Detroit.
New Orleans population is currently thought to be 295,450, which would mean a rate of about 71 per 100,000 people. By comparison, Washington's homicide rate was about 30 per 100,000 people, still higher than those of New York, Chicago and Philadelphia, but lower than in Baltimore and Detroit.
A preliminary tally of recorded homicides in New York was 494 as of midnight Monday, compared with 596 for all of 2006, police said. But the number could change depending on if a 2007 crime is later reclassified, they said.
The tally for 2007 is the lowest number of killings since reliable record-keeping started in 1963.
Crime has plummeted since 1990 when homicides reached an all-time high of 2,224, making the city the murder capital of the U.S.
Experts have said that the decline in homicides in New York is due to computerized tracking of crime trends and tactics, such as flooding high-crime areas with police officers.
The figure for 2007 could be changed if a death that occurred in 2007 was later determined to be a homicide. The cutoff period for that is Jan. 15, said police spokesman Paul J. Browne.
In the country's capital, however, homicides rose 7 percent in 2007 after years of decline, and police attributed the increase in part to gang fights and drugs.
The city had recorded 181 killings as of late Monday, up from a 21-year low of 169 homicides in 2006. The number of killings had been dropping since 2002. Nonfatal shootings and other gun crimes also were up, according to preliminary police data.
The increase in violence comes as the U.S. Supreme Court prepares to hear arguments this year on whether the capital's 31-year ban on handgun ownership violates the Constitution. The case could produce the most in-depth examination in 70 years of the right to "keep and bear arms," which is held dear by many Americans.
Citywide, about 77 percent of the year's homicide victims were killed by gunfire. More than 80 percent of the victims were black males.
Despite the increase in killings, 2007 marked the fourth consecutive year of fewer than 200 homicides in Washington. The number of killings also is far lower than the numbers in the late 1980s and early 1990s, when more than 400 people were slain annually as crack cocaine-related violence ravaged the city.
© MMVIII The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.



Perhaps this is nature at work, thinning the herd, or maybe it''s just natural selection. Whatever it is, I could care less.
Will the good people of n''orleans finally get rid of that corrupt politician? Please. You are not getting one more federal dollar until you do (and you have gotten hundreds of millions of dollars)
Where has my taxmoney gone? Which politician is driving a new lexus? or living in a new house while the federal money is used to buy his new silk suit.
N.O. is so freeeeking corrupt, it is unbelievable.
Vote the bums out!
Some of these countries have tough gun control, others have lots of guns available. What makes the U.S. so dangerous, I wonder ? The number of guns per household ?
Katrina, katrina, katrina.
That''s the excuse we''re gonna here for the next 15 years.
Keep throwing government aid to N.O.
That''s what they live for.
Yes, but work with me here, because it has been a long time since Bible school: Cain and Abel were Adam''s sons from his second marriage (to Eve). We know it was his second, because the union with Lillith was his first marriage.
Anyway, Cain killed Abel and God bannished him East of Eden to the land of Nod, where he married and prospered. There is no satisfactory explanation in the Bible for where the civilizations East of Eden came from.
So far we have done nothing and we''re fresh out of ideas.
Over 2,000 people died horrible deaths, thousands of animals suffered and died, and hundreds of thousands of decent hard working people suffered financial breakdowns.
Perhaps your statement will come back to haunt you sooner than you think. What goes around, comes around.
He has really performed for them, hasn''t he!
You may not like to hear that or think it''s racist but it''s the truth. Look it up.
So crimes go unsolved, and the perpetrators go free to likely commit other crimes (murders) continuously, because no one wants to "snitch" on them.
Should we feel sorry for the people of New Orleans (and other cities) who refuse to cooperate with the police during a murder investigation?
No.
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New Orleans is still in a hurricane zone and if the next one is a direct hit it will be even worse than the last. Of course the good thing about hurricanes is you know there coming A WEEK AHEAD OF TIME! maybe next time the people of New Orleans won''t just sit on there a$$''$ waiting for the government to take care of there every need!
Where''s Al Sharpthong and Jesse Jackscum?
They also used their government-issued debit cards in various places around Texas to buy big-screen TVs and extravagant "bling."
This is what our tax dollars go for...
Each year s*adism kills millions of people. But there is hope! Yes, here at the International S*adism Foundation (ISF) we are close to a break through to stop this killer that has mutated to not distinguish between old and young, rich or poor, or any race or religion. It can cause death and injury to even the most praised and honored, sacred and loved, and your precious small children. Even pets and animals are not immune. Once just a mass killer of bugs and insects, it has spread and evolved into our world%u2019s greatest threat. We need your help. Donate your tax-deductible gift to The International S*adism Foundation today and help fight the war on s*adism.
And HE said unto them, depart from me, I never knew you.
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by bb19631
January 3, 2008 5:04 PM PST
- Stop blaming everything on Hurricane Katrina, it''s just an excuse to use. That state has always been that way. Murder, crimes they obviously have no self respect for themselves or anyone else. It''s a give me -give me , what''s in it for me state.
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