WASHINGTON — The crack epidemic that began in the 1980s ushered in a wave of bloodletting in the nation’s capital and a death toll that ticked upward daily. Dead bodies, sometimes several a night, had homicide detectives hustling between crime scenes and earned Washington unwelcome monikers such as the nation’s “murder capital.” At the time, some feared the murder rate might ascend to more frightening heights.
But after approaching nearly 500 slayings a year in the early 1990s, the annual rate has gradually declined to the point that the city is now on the verge of a once-unthinkable milestone.
The number of 2012 killings in the District of Columbia stands at 78 and is on pace to finish lower than 100 for the first time since 1963, police records show.
“It strikes me probably daily as I ride around the city, or sometimes when I’m sitting at home at night, and it’s 10 o’clock and my phone’s not ringing. Or I get up in the morning, and I go, ‘Oh my gosh, I’ve slept five hours,” said Police Chief Cathy Lanier, who joined the department amid violent 1991 street riots. “It strikes me quite often how different things are now.”
The drop reflects a downward trend in violent crime nationwide and is in line with declining homicides in other big cities. Across the country, violent crime reported by police to the FBI fell by 3.8 percent last year from 2010.
Though D.C. is hardly crime-free today, and crime in some categories is even up, the homicide decline is especially notable in a place where grisly acts of violence — sometimes not far from the U.S. Capitol — embodied the worst of the crack scourge.
The number of homicides in this city of more than 600,000 residents averaged about 457 between 1989 and 1993, a staggering rate that attracted unwanted attention.
“A war zone? No, Washington, D.C.,” was the sub-headline of a 1992 People magazine story branded Washington as a “city under siege.”
Local News
D.C. on pace for fewer than 100 homicides in 2012
Drop reflects downward trend in violent crime nationwide
- Local News
-
-
Upcoming changes in Medicare could save older diabetics money
Medicare begins a major change next month that could save older diabetics money and time when they buy crucial supplies to test their blood sugar — but it also may cause some confusion as patients figure out the new system.
-
CSX sees rail use potential in sites, especially Barton Industrial Park
A CSX Transportation representative told a gathering of local economic development officials Wednesday that there are properties locally that may be attractive to rail use companies and recommended the Barton Industrial Park for consideration for marketing by the transportation giant.
-
Grate day on the job
-
Garrett County commissioners OK transportation plan
The Garrett County commissioners approved the county planning commission’s recommended priority list for nine projects, one of which is new, to the State of Maryland Consolidated Transportation 2014 Plan. The planning commission recommended that a new project, state Route 135/Sand Flat Road intersection, be added to the list for safety reasons, according to John Nelson, director of planning and land development.
-
Field training
-
Mineral County man third person sentenced in cocaine distribution
Charles Page Haines III, 51, was sentenced to 92 months’ imprisonment to be followed by six years of supervised release.
-
Russell Livengood, retired city fire chief, dies at 84
For more than four decades, Russell Livengood answered the call, actually thousands of calls, for the citizens of Cumberland as a member of the Cumberland Fire Department.
-
New $4M medical center to open in Meyersdale
A new state-of-the-art building for primary care physicians and specialists is expected to be opened at Conemaugh Health System’s Meyersdale Medical Center by the fall of 2014.
-
Garrett innovators
-
Three playing for all the marbles in New Jersey
Briana Brode had another near-perfect day and with 15 wins and only one loss is tied for first place in the girls division after preliminary play Wednesday at the National Marbles Tournament.
- More Local News Headlines
-
Fmr. TWA Flight 800 Investigators Want New Probe
In Berlin, Obama Channels Cold War Activism
AP: DOJ Broke Own Rules Seizing Phone Records
Time Lapse: Rebuilding Bridge Post-collapse
Ohio Woman Accuses 3 of Holding Her Captive
Hunt for Ex-Teamster Boss Hoffa's Remains Ends
Aug. Trial Set for Ohio Man in Triple Kidnapping
Car Crash in NYC's East Village Injures 8
Obama Renews Call for Nuclear Reductions
Raw: Car Jumps Curb in NYC, Injures 8
Obama: 'Lives Have Been Saved' by NSA Programs
Obama: Friction in Afghan Talks No Surprise
Raw: Arizona Wildfire Scorches 8 Square Miles
Unusual Heat Wave Bakes Alaska
Hoffa Mystery Still Fascinates After 4 Decades
Raw: 1 Dead in Shooting at Mo. Apartment Complex
Raw: Huge Fire Near Yosemite National Park
3 Charged in Ohio With Enslaving Mom, Daughter
Obama Seeks G-8 Support on Syria
Military Plans to Put Women in Combat Jobs
