The number of homicides in Detroit fell by 15.4 percent in 2010, reports the Detroit News. The city reported 308 murders in 2010, down from the 364 reported in 2009. Nonfatal shootings dropped by 10.5 percent, to 1,170 last year from 1,307 in 2009. Police Chief Ralph Godbee credited smarter deployment of officers and more community involvement, for the declines. Godbee has reintroduced a daily police blotter that had been discontinued under former Mayor Kwame Kilpatrick.
Chicago and Cleveland reported homicide drops but in Boston, the number of killings rose to 72 in 2010, up 47 percent from 49 in 2009, while Milwaukee reported 94 slayings in 2010, up 31 percent from 72 in 2009. University of Detroit Mercy Law Prof. Larry Dubin agreed with Godbee that Detroit’s drop is likely due to deploying officers better, a strategy that was first employed by former Police Chief Warren Evans. “The police have been more effective in utilizing their limited resources to cover the areas of the city that are the most susceptible to crime,” Dubin said.