1989 SPECIAL REPORT: "WASHINGTON D.C... MURDER CAPITAL"

Crime in Washington, D.C., is directly related to the city's demographics, geography, and unique criminal justice system. The District's population reached a peak of 802,178 in 1950. Shortly thereafter, the city began losing residents, and by 1980 Washington had lost one-quarter of its population. The population loss to the suburbs also created a new demographic pattern, which divided affluent neighborhoods west of Rock Creek Park from more crime-ridden and blighted areas to the east.

Despite being the headquarters of multiple federal law enforcement agencies, such as the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) and United States Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA), the nationwide crack epidemic of the 1980s and 1990s greatly affected the city and led to large increases in crime. The number of homicides in Washington peaked in 1991 at 482, a rate of 80.6 homicides per 100,000 residents, and the city eventually became known as the "murder capital" of the United States.

The crime rate started to fall in the mid-1990s as the crack cocaine epidemic gave way to economic revitalization projects and as incarceration rates increased. Gentrification efforts have also started to transform the demographics of distressed neighborhoods, recently leading to the first rise in the District's population in 60 years.

By the mid-2000s, crime rates in Washington dropped to their lowest levels in over 20 years. As in many major cities, crime remains a significant factor in D.C., especially in the city's northwestern neighborhoods, which tend to be more affluent, draw more tourists, and have more vibrant nightlife. Violent crime also remains a problem in Ward 8, which has the city's highest concentration of poverty.

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