CMPD Reports Continued Downward Trend in Crime During Q3 Presentation
Quarterly report comes amidst ongoing public safety debate in Charlotte
CMPD held its third-quarter public safety report on Wednesday, covering January through September of 2025, amid ongoing discussion and debate around public safety concerns in Charlotte.
CMPD officials reported that overall crime is down 8% compared to the same point last year while violent crimes including homicides, rapes, robberies and aggravated assaults have seen a 20% decline, marking the third consecutive quarter of downward movement.
Property crimes including residential and commercial burglary, auto theft and larceny are also down this year by 5% compared to the same time last year, though commercial burglaries and larceny from motor vehicles saw a slight rise.
It’s important to note that comparisons covering the span of a single year should not necessarily be considered a trend, it’s notable that each quarter this year has seen a drop in crime compared to 2024, which also saw a drop in overall and violent crime compared to 2023.
It’s also notable that CMPD’s quarterly and annual crime reports document the total numbers of a respective type of crime rather than per-capita crime rates, which would take the city’s population growth into account, leading to more significant percentage decreases.
Wednesday’s press conference came less than two weeks after the Charlotte-Mecklenburg Fraternal Order of Police, Lodge #9, a union representing local police officers that does not speak for the department itself, released a formal notice calling for Mayor Vi Lyles and Gov. Josh Stein to request federal law enforcement help, including the National Guard, in Charlotte to address an apparent “violence crisis.”
Read more: Local Leaders Respond to FOP’s National Guard Request
“Despite statistical progress, violent crime continues to be a daily reality in Charlotte,” the FOP’s letter read, citing an increase in homicides in the Uptown area, where high-profile crimes have garnered responses from residents and city leaders alike throughout the year.
CMPD officials have refused to comment on the FOP’s request and continued to do so during Wednesday’s press conference.
“The progress we’re making in reducing violent crime is the result of strong ongoing teamwork, but public safety is not the responsibility of law enforcement alone,” CMPD Lt. Crystal Fletcher said after refusing to comment directly on the FOP’s letter Wednesday. “It requires a united effort.”
Fletcher said the most encouraging trend among the data thus far this year has been the 24% decrease in homicides. CMPD reports 62 homicides in the first nine months of 2025 compared to 82 during the same span last year.
”While this is a notable decrease, 62 homicides are still too many,” Fletcher said. “If you are the victim of a crime or you know someone who has been victimized, it can shape your perception of safety in Charlotte. In reality, overall and violent crime has both declined significantly. However, high-profile incidents and the influence of social media can distort public perception, making crime seem more prevalent than it truly is.”
Queen City Nerve tracked 70 homicides in Charlotte during the first nine months of the year. Though each one of the killings we’ve mapped below are taken directly from CMPD’s publicly released homicide reports and nowhere else, our numbers sometimes differ from the department’s because we count police killings and justified homicides in our data.
In the map above showing homicides that have occurred in Charlotte this year, black markers signify deaths by gun violence, green markers signify killings that may be deemed justified, red markers signify stabbings, yellow markers signify murder by vehicle, purple markers signify deaths by trauma or unknown cause, and blue markers signify police killings.
Queen City Nerve has tracked nine more Charlotte killings in the first 15 days of October, including the Oct. 2 double murder of two brothers who owned a motel in northwest Charlotte and this week’s killing of single mother Dwanneich Hammonds in a SouthPark apartment complex.
CMPD has reported arrests in three of the nine murders recorded this month.
Even with the nine murder recorded already this month, the 79 homicides we’ve tracked thus far this year is a notable drop from the 102 killings we had mapped as of Oct. 15 last year.
Fletcher on Wednesday said CMPD’s goal is not only to reduce crime but to build trust by being transparent, sharing accurate data and responding directly to community concerns. Despite that stated goal, CMPD ceased its weekly media briefings in August.
CMPD’s latest initiatives
During Wednesday’s press conference, Deputy Chief Jackie Bryley presented crime prevention initiatives that were covered in last week’s Charlotte Center City Partners press conference, including the recent launch of the Entertainment District Unit (EDU) and the CROWN Culture Initiative.
The CROWN Culture Initiative involves elevating police presence in certain areas around Uptown and South End, including within a half-mile radius of the Trade & Tryon streets intersection, and more strictly enforcing certain ordinances involving panhandling and illegal street vending, for example.
Read more: Center City Leaders Discuss Public Safety Measures in Uptown
The EDU, on the other hand, is a new unit launched in response to emerging trends of violent crimes occurring near bars and nightlife, Lim said. The specialized police unit is dedicated entirely to making nightlife safer, operating during peak nightlife hours in areas where such activity is focused.
Bryley reported that officer-initiated efforts are up 18%, with arrests seeing a 15% increase and 3,167 illegal firearms seized thus far in 2025.
“While these numbers we share today reflect our entire city, spanning all 13 divisions and our airport, we recognize that recent events, mainly in our Central Division [in Uptown and South End] have captured national attention, shaping the perceptions of safety in our city,” Bryley said.
Read more: How Iryna Zarutska’s Killing Sparked a National Outrage
She pointed out that the Central Division covers 4.2 square miles and makes up less than 1% of CMPD’s jurisdiction. Bryley said CMPD’s goal is to restore public confidence, reduce crime and reinforce the sense of safety for all of Charlotte’s communities, not just Uptown and South End.
“Our officers are working with dedication and purpose every day across our city,” she said. “Oftentimes, our officers are called on to be everything to all people, including mediators, social workers, mental health assessors, while trying to do the job that they actually signed up to do by being peacekeepers in our community and protecting those in need.”
CMPD shines light on repeat offender issue
Sergeant Todd Martin said he credits Crime Reduction Units (CRUs), which work to identify and reduce victimization in high-crime areas, with saving lives since they were relaunched in July.
According to Martin, teams across four service areas have made more than 1,256 traffic stops and 450 arrests while seizing more than 282 illegal firearms and over 80 pounds of illegal narcotics.
“By removing firearms and drugs from the streets, our CRUs are preventing future violent crimes and potential loss of life,” Martin said. “But behind the numbers, we’re seeing a troubling pattern.”
Many of these crimes are being committed by repeat offenders, both adults and juveniles, Martin warned.
“By increasing incipient and victimization numbers, habitual offenders inflate crime statistics while, in reality, multiple incidents are the work of one or a few individuals,” he said, noting that a disproportionate number of violent incidents and property crimes are committed by those with extensive criminal histories, many of whom continue to cycle through the justice system without facing meaningful consequences.
CMPD found that more than 60% of violent criminal arrests involved individuals with prior arrests.
“This lack of accountability undermines community safety and places an undue burden on victims, neighborhoods and law enforcement resources,” Martin said.
This trend was cited in part as the reason the House Judiciary Subcommittee on Oversight held a public hearing for Victims of Violent Crime in Charlotte on Sept. 29.
Read: Community Leaders Protest Politicization of Iryna Zarutska’s Murder Outside Hearing
The hearing came after the murder of Iryna Zarutska on Aug. 22 and included speeches from the loved ones of local murder victims such as Mary Collins. Republican members of the subcommittee and NC representatives criticized North Carolina and Mecklenburg County’s “soft-on-crime” laws that they claimed incentivizes crime by providing no real punishment.
On Wednesday, Martin pointed out that the issue extends beyond adults as juveniles are repeatedly cycling through the system with little accountability.
“The cycle of catch and release does not reduce crime in our community,” he said. “While the person committing the crimes is ultimately responsible for their actions, others must step up to help ensure they are held accountable.”
Martin called on families, friends, criminal justice partners, community organizations and local leaders to work together for a more effective, collaborative approach to breaking the cycle of repeat offenders.
Crime by the numbers
The below statistical breakdown provided by CMPD gives a snapshot of crime numbers by category through the third quarter of 2025 compared to the same time last year:
- Violent crimes: 4,506 offenses in 2025 compared to 5,622 offenses in 2024
- Homicides: 62 in 2025 compared to 82 in 2024
- Aggravated assaults: 3,494 in 2025 compared to 4,311 in 2024
- Rapes: 127 in 2025 compared to 183 in 2024
- Robberies: 821 in 2025 compared to 1046 in 2024
- Property crimes: 26,522 offenses in 2025 compared to 27,974 in 2024
- Residential burglaries: 1,239 in 2025 compared to 1,322 in 2024
- Commercial burglaries: 1,824 in 2025 compared to 1,751 in 2024
- Larcenies from automobiles: 7,716 in 2025 compared to 7,697 in 2024
- Vehicle thefts: 4,627 in 2025 compared to 5,850 in 2024
- Arsons: 96 in 2025 compared to 116 in 2024
