Police chief gives crime update as Charlotte homicides rise in 2022

CHARLOTTE, N.C. (WBTV) – Charlotte-Mecklenburg Police Chief Johnny Jennings updated Charlotte City Council members on crime in the city Monday night.

As of Sept. 6, there have been 82 homicides in Charlotte for 2022, which is higher than the same time in 2021.

Jennings told city leaders violent crime is up 2%.

“Gun violence involving juveniles is the main concern I have,” he said.

According to numbers presented Monday, there have been 118 juvenile suspects involved in gun-related offenses. The chief said 482 juveniles have been victims of crimes involving guns.

A major effort has been violence prevention at the school level, he said.

When the chief briefed city council back in January, he was able to report overall crime was down 5% for 2021. As of July, it’s up 4%, including homicides.

Related: Police: Violent crime up 3% in Charlotte for first half of 2022

During that mid-year update from CMPD, officers called gun crimes committed by minors one of their biggest problems.

To make matters worse, police say the minors in some of these cases aren’t prosecuted as adults and end up being released back to their caretakers and re-offend.

More recently, crime at Inlivian - the city’s housing authority - has been in the spotlight.

Last week, officials with Inlivian met with residents and said the agency is working with CMPD to launch a “see something, say something” campaign, encouraging neighbors to report what they’re seeing anonymously.

Related: Inlivian housing team meeting with neighbors concerned about violent crime in Charlotte apartment complexes

Some of the programs in the SAFE Charlotte initiative include violence interruptors, where trained civilians work in neighborhoods like Beatties Ford to stop violence before it starts.

The city has also given nearly $1 million in grants to organizations that provide job training and other support to young people.

CMPD also opened a training center focused on de-escalation and put an emphasis on reaching out to those with limited English.

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