Detroit Crime Rates Plunge in 2025: City Credits Collaboration and Innovation for Success

Detroit saw 165 homicides in 2025, as reported by the Associated Press. The figure stands as the lowest since 1964 and marks the first time the city dipped below 200 in six decades. Police Chief Todd Bettison shared the data Wednesday, revealing a 19% decline from the 203 murders in 2024.

Every type of violent crime decreased during 2025. Nonfatal shootings plummeted 26%, decreasing from 607 the year before to 447. Carjackings went down 46% from 142 to 77. Robberies fell from 1,209 to 953.

"What we're doing in the city of Detroit is working," said Bettison, according to CBS News. "We will continue investing in prevention, enforcement, technology — everything."

Sexual assaults dropped 13.7%. Aggravated assaults declined 8.4%, and burglaries went down 10%. Auto thefts fell 23.3%. Violent crime overall dropped 10%, while property crime decreased nearly 10%.

The 2025 homicide rate reached approximately 25 per 100,000 residents, based on a population of around 645,000, decreasing from 32 per 100,000 in 2024, according to data from the Center for Public Safety Initiatives at the Rochester Institute of Technology. Back in 1974, when Detroit recorded a peak of 801 murders with a population of 1.5 million, the rate was 53.4 per 100,000.

Mayor Mary Sheffield took office Jan. 1, succeeding Mike Duggan. Bettison was named to his current role on Feb. 1, 2025, after serving as interim chief since fall 2024, according to CBS News

"Safer communities and historic reductions in crime like this don't happen without effective strategies, great partnerships, and the political will to fund these efforts," Sheffield said, as per CBS News .

The police department now prioritizes responding to resident calls more than addressing illegal street parties. Officers also ramped up use of weapons scanners at large events and pushed for stricter parental responsibility fines for curfew violations. More than 6,200 guns were recovered in 2025.

Alaina De Biasi, professor of criminology and criminal justice at Wayne State University, said the reductions represent "kind of a return to pre-pandemic levels," as reported by the Associated Press. Homicides jumped nearly 30% in 2020 over the year before, as many cities reported spikes in gun violence during the coronavirus pandemic.

"We have multiple violence reduction initiatives happening at any one time," De Biasi said, according to the Associated Press.

Sheffield announced plans to create an Office of Neighborhood and Community Safety within the next few weeks. It will focus on crime prevention strategies, mental health issues, job training, and after-school programs.

The decline mirrors a national trend. Violent crime in the United States fell by 4.5% in 2024, according to an FBI report. Murder and nonnegligent manslaughter dropped nearly 15% from a year earlier.