Louisville Homicide Rates Increased at One of Highest Rates in U.S. During Covid, Per Study

Louisville ranked 7th nationally in homicide rate increases, per the new WalletHub study. Wikimedia Commons/Tony Webster

Homicide rates in the U.S. rose dramatically during the Covid-19 pandemic of the past two years, a new WalletHub study found, and Louisville ranked 7th in increased homicides during that time.

WalletHub compared the homicide rates of 50 of the largest U.S. cities year over year to reach a composite score on which the rankings were achieved. The findings were based on per capita homicides in Q1 2022, as well as per capita homicides in Q1 2022 vs. Q1 2021 and Q1 2020. WalletHub reports that homicide rates have risen by an average of 17% in the 50 most populated U.S. cities between Q1 2020 and Q1 2022.

Unfortunately, Louisville is one of the leaders in this rise. While New Orleans topped the list — it really wasn’t even close — with a composite score of 100 by increasing the most in each of the aforementioned time frames. By comparison, Louisville ranked no higher than fourth in any of the three categories, but with an alarming jump of 6.3 per capita in Q01 2022, roughly triple that of Q1 2020, as Covid-19 was beginning to take hold. Louisville’s composite score was 56.95.

Cincinnati ranked second with a composite score of 96.18; Atlanta was third at 84.18; Baltimore ranked fourth, followed by Memphis, Milwaukee and then Louisville. Norfolk, Va., Detroit and Dallas filled out the top 10, respectively. Of cities included in the study, Lincoln, Neb., Madison, Wis., and Boston saw the three lowest increases.