Data from the Memphis Shelby Crime Commission shows that major reported crime in both the city and county declined “significantly” from January to September compared to last year.
Officials said major violent crime includes reported murder, forcible rape, robbery, and aggravated assault. The Memphis Shelby Crime Commission along with the University of Memphis Public Safety Institute used data from the Tennessee Bureau of Investigation (TBI).
The Crime Commission noted that TBI bases its data on the number of victims and offenses, and Memphis Police Department (MPD) releases crime data based on the number of incidents as opposed to victims or offenses.
“While we are not yet where we need to be in crime reduction, the declines through September of this year are very significant and reflect tremendous progress, which actually began last year,” Bill Gibbons, executive director director of the Public Safety Institute and president of the Crime Commission, said. “While part of it is a general nationwide post-pandemic decline, specific local steps have contributed significantly.”
According to the commission, MPD’s Operation Code Zero contributed significantly to the decline of crime. This initiative engages multiple crime fighting agencies to remove “illegal guns and drugs from neighborhoods,” recovering stolen vehicles, arresting violent criminals, and intervening in illegal gambling.
Though Gibbons noted that the country as a whole saw crime decline post-pandemic, the Vera Institute noted that Memphis — along with other cities — saw an increase in homicides by the end of 2024.
The Vera Institute added that Memphis, along with cities such as Austin, Louisville, and Memphis ended 2024 with “homicides significantly above pre-pandemic levels).
Their research also showed that numbers from earlier this year “looked promising” in these cities as well.
The Vera Institute based this conclusion on data from the Council on Criminal Justice (CCJ) that showed that Memphis had a reported homicide rate of 38 per 100,000 people.
“Memphis’ crime trends differ depending on the time period and crime type considered,” CCJ said. “The homicide rate in Memphis is among the highest in the study sample and is dropping slower than it is in other large cities.”
So far this year there were 9,570 offenses in the first three quarters of this year, resulting in an overall 21.5 percent drop in violent crime compared to the same period in 2024. Murders dropped by 14.3 percent and reported rapes declined by 26.3 percent.
The rate of aggravated assaults declined by 21.6 percent.
The Crime Commission said that the Memphis Police Department has increased their presence and policing through different initiatives. They also noted that MPD along with Shelby County Sheriff’s Office and the U.S. Marshals Service have served outstanding arrest warrants, resulting in a reduction of “repeat serious offenders.”
These numbers come as the Memphis Safe Task Force has been deployed by President Donald Trump and Governor Bill Lee to combat violent crime in the city.
The decline in crime despite the delpoyment of federal troops in Memphis has been noted by the Senate Democratic Caucus as they stated “crime was trending down well before the feds got to town.”
“Of course, the facts won’t stop Trump or his local enablers from taking credit for reduced crime in Memphis,” the Senate Democrats said in a statement.