• Key categories of homicides, nonfatal shootings and carjackings trending 15%-30% below last year’s 3rd Quarter numbers

• Partnerships among local, federal, state and community partners continue to produce results

• Stepped up federal enforcement and prosecution, including federal prosecutors now embedded at many DPD precincts, making an impact

• Successful Community Violence Intervention (CVI) efforts receive boost with state approval of Public Safety Trust Fund

Through the first three quarters of 2025, the number of violent crimes in Detroit continued to plummet, falling far below even the 60-year low numbers achieved in 2024, thanks to ongoing partnerships between local and state law enforcement, community groups, and a recent surge in federal enforcement and prosecutions. Through September 30, 2025, Detroit has seen double-digit drops in homicides, nonfatal shootings and carjackings compared to the same point last year, Chief Todd Bettison and Mayor Mike Duggan announced today.

In 2024, Detroit finished the year with 203 homicides, the fewest on record since 1965. Through the first three quarters of 2024, there were 155 homicides. As of September 30 of this year, there were 132. The city also is seeing even steep reductions in nonfatal shootings and carjackings.

“Having prosecutors embedded in precincts helps them become much more familiar with the patterns and the individuals involved in criminal activity,” Chief Bettison said. “It also helps to make sure that our officers are developing cases that will withstand prosecutorial review, which has resulted in a rise in the closure rate of nonfatal shooting cases, in particular.” Nonfatal case closures soared to more than 70% in 2024, after the addition of assistant county prosecutors in precincts.

Community Violence Intervention effort to expand with State funding approved last week

The City’s Community Violence Intervention groups have produced incredible results in achieving reductions in homicides and nonfatal shootings beyond the reductions being experienced in non CVI areas. In June, the city added to new CVI groups – Live In Peace and Team Pursuit – on the northeast side, bringing the total number of CVI zones to seven.

Additionally, Ceasefire Detroit will implement the targeted and intensive approach of serving a specific “CVI zone,” servicing a 4.5-mile area bounded by Puritan, Telegraph, Schoolcraft and the Southfield Freeway. Ceasefire Detroit has offered violence prevention services since 2013 and has experience working across a wide range of police precincts.

Late last week, the Michigan Legislature approved the state’s new budget, including a Public Safety Trust Fund that will provide additional funding to cities with a higher rate of crime. Mayor Duggan said that the city will use a portion of those revenues to fund another CVI zone expansion, based on data collected over the past year. This means the area of the city covered by violence prevention groups committed to a specific violence prevention zone would increase over 50% from where it was just three months ago:

Ongoing Partnerships

Wayne County Executive Warren Evans led a coordinated effort across the County law enforcement departments and the courts. A new Wayne County Prosecutors contract provided a 15% increase, making Wayne County competitive with the surrounding counties and a new Wayne County Sheriff’s contract gave starting deputies a 24% increase, allowing Sheriff Washington to begin filling 200 vacancies.

“We’re proud to be doing even better than last year’s achievement. That doesn’t happen by accident. It’s the result of strong partnerships between Wayne County, the City of Detroit, law enforcement, community leaders, religious leaders, and others who refuse to give up on their neighborhoods, said County Executive Evans. “Collaboration is the engine of this progress, and when we work together, we make our communities safer, stronger, and more hopeful for the future. A safer Detroit leads to a safer Wayne County.”

The Mayor and Chief Todd Bettison thanked all partners involved in the work, including:

• Wayne County officials including Executive Warren Evans, Prosecutor Kym Worthy, Sheriff Raphael Washington

• Federal officials including US Attorney Jerome Gorgon, as well as the FBI, AFT and Department of Homeland Security

• Michigan State Police and Michigan Department of Corrections

• Leadership of the courts, including 3rd Circuit Court Chief Judge Pat Fresard and 36th District Court Chief Judge William McConico

• Detroit-Wayne Integrated Health Network

• The City’s seven ShotStoppers community violence intervention groups: Detroit Friends & Family, Force Detroit, New Era Detroit, Detroit 300, Detroit People’s Community, Live in Peace and Team Pursuit.

“We still have three months left in this year, however the partnerships and strategies we’ve implemented continue only are becoming more effective,” said Detroit Mayor Mike Duggan. “I am confident that by the end of this year, we will have another historic reduction.”

Bettison and Duggan also thanked Detroit City Council for its adoption of tougher parental responsibility fines - $250 for a first offense and $500 for a second – for parents of juveniles out after curfew. In June, the city experienced a spike in juvenile related violence. Since the changes were implemented, juvenile crime has declined significantly.

They also praised new US Attorney for the Eastern District of Michigan, Jerome Gorgon, who has made prosecution of gang and gun related crimes a major priority. In August, Gorgon’s office partnered with DPD and the DEA on a raid of 11 suspected gang dens that resulted in the seizure of 44 illegal firearms. Gorgon also has embedded federal prosecutors in seven of the city’s precincts, while Wayne County Prosecutor Kym Worthy has embedded 8 county prosecutors across seven precincts.

Wayne County Sheriff Rafael increased accountability for defendants released on tether to the Wayne County Sheriff. Approximately 85% of tethered defendants have movement restrictions in their release orders, which are monitored and enforced on a real-time basis by the Sheriff’s Department.

State Partnerships

Heidi Washington and the Michigan Department of Corrections enhanced enforcement for those on Probation and Parole. MDOC identified individuals who were most likely to illegally possess firearms while on probation and worked with the courts to secure updated probation orders that allowed for additional searches and compliance checks to be carried out by the MDOC and law enforcement partners. The resulting arrests helped take more guns off the streets.

Michigan State Police became a critical partner in 2023’s successful crackdown on drag racing and drifting. MSP air support helped monitor illegal activities from above and allowed the tracking and arrest of drivers of fleeing vehicles without the danger of high-speed DPD traffic pursuits.

“Everyone deserves to feel safe in their home and on the roadways they travel,” stated Col. James F. Grady, II, Director of the Michigan State Police. “The Michigan State Police is committed to working along side our colleagues at the Detroit Police Department and together with our partners at the federal level to continue to reduce crime and improve public safety outcomes, not only for the residents of Detroit, but in communities across the state.

Court Partnership

Chief Wayne County 3rd Circuit Court Judge Patricia Fresard and the Judges of the Circuit Court reduced the backlog of felony gun cases by 3,000 cases, bringing justice and closure to victims and those accused.

Chief Judge William McConico and the Judges of the 36th District Court reduced the felony gun case backlog by nearly 1,700, restoring the court’s operations to pre-Covid levels.

“Detroit’s progress in reducing crime shows what’s possible when the Court and our justice partners work together with purpose,” said 36th District Court Chief Judge William C. McConico. “We’re not just improving outcomes today, we’re building a safer, stronger city for the future.”

DPD’s partnership with Detroit Wayne Integrated Health Network (DWIHN) has become a national example of policing that is conscious of and sensitive to the fact that many of the individuals they encounter may be experiencing some form of emotional crisis. To address this, DPD and DWIHN have developed a training program and Crisis Intervention Team co-response protocol that has helped police and mental health professionals to deescalate situations and prevent individuals from harming themselves or others.