Indianapolis mirrors nationwide violent crime decline
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Indianapolis is one of the major U.S. cities contributing to a historic drop in homicides over the past three years, and an overall decline in violent crime that now spans two presidencies.
Why it matters: Experts warn that progress won't last without the right blend of funding, policing and community support.
By the numbers: An Axios analysis of the Major Cities Chiefs Association's (MCCA) survey shows double-digit percentage drops in Indianapolis homicides (-15%), rapes (-18.5%), robberies (-32.6%) and aggravated assaults (-28.8%) compared to the first six months of 2025.
- This year's declines follow criminal homicides dropping by 20% and non-fatal shootings dropping by 21% from 2024 to 2025.
- Overall, homicides in 2025 were down about 45% from the city's pandemic-era peak in 2021.
Zoom in: In 2022, the city implemented a Gun Violence Reduction Strategy, to which it attributes much of that drop.
- That strategy includes the Indy Peace program of outreach workers and violence interrupters.
- Prevention and enforcement work is focused on what IMPD says is a small percentage of people and places that drive the bulk of violent crime.
Zoom out: Data from 66 large U.S. communities found drops in violent crime in the first six months of 2026 compared to the same period last year.
- Across the country, homicides dropped 17.2%, robberies fell 16.6%, rapes declined 6.2% and aggravated assaults decreased 5.7%.
- Taken together, the four categories were down about 8.3%, for roughly 14,200 fewer reported violent crimes, according to the Axios review.
Caveat: Some of the biggest percentage drops came in places with relatively few killings to begin with.
- Newark fell 64.7% from 17 to six homicides, and Raleigh fell 63.6% from 11 to four, for example.
Yes, but: Experts say no single cause explains the improvement. Instead, the gains are the product of continued public investment, focused law enforcement strategies and community-led violence interventions.
- In a Pew Charitable Trusts analysis released one day after the MCCA survey results, crime data analyst Jeff Asher explained that 2025's homicide reduction is part of a three-year trend after a historic spike.
- Homicides saw the largest one-year increase ever recorded in 2020 (29%), but he believes the ongoing drops represent more than a return to the pre-pandemic status quo.
- "The bottom line is that we can't say when murder was lower than it is right now, which is a pretty remarkable achievement," Asher told Pew.