Twelve homicides were reported by the Jackson Police Department to have occurred in the city so far this year by end of January 2024, and all but two of those deaths involved guns, Clarion Ledger reporting shows.
Of the 12 murders so far this year in Jackson, four were committed on the same day, and four more were reported in the last seven days of January.
Jackson Police Chief Joseph Wade said the police department is working to reduce violent crime in the city.
Homicides 2022:Jackson homicide rate remains high through 2022 with at least 130 killings
“The 12 homicides are not a representation of the good people that live, work and go to school here in the city of Jackson,” Wade said via a Thursday telephone interview with the Clarion Ledger. “It is not a representation of the hard work that the men and women of JPD are doing, but it is a representation that there is more work to be done.”
If the loss of life continues at the same pace until the end of 2024, homicides could reach 100 for the fourth consecutive year: 109 in 2023, according the City of Jackson’s website; 135 in 2022; 155 in 2021; and 130 in 2020.