LEXINGTON, Ky. (LEX 18) — Homicides in Lexington dropped by nearly 50% between 2022 and 2023.
In 2022, there were 44 homicides. In 2023, there were 24 homicides.
There’s no single reason for the decrease, Chief Weathers told LEX 18.
“I think it was a lot of hard work, not just on our part - but working with One Lexington,” Weathers said. “I think it’s a direct result of the community putting out the effort to bring these homicides down.”
After COVID and the George Floyd protests, they had to reestablish relationships with community members, he said.
“One of the things we notice you really can’t measure is how willing people are to talk to us,” Weathers said.
In addition, they recognized how the spike in violence following COVID could be partly attributed to people being unable to resolve conflicts.
“We started reaching out to people who were victims,” Weathers said.
They also spoke with perpetrators - offering resources to both, he said.
His hope is to get to zero homicides.
“Just for me personally, each one is so sad because there’s somebody that did not get to live their life to the fullest,” Weathers said.
