Crime In Montgomery County Increases For Third Year In A Row

MONTGOMERY COUNTY, MD — Montgomery County saw an increase in crime in 2023 for the third year in a row, with carjackings increasing by almost 29 percent compared to 2022, according to new data released by the county.

Among the offenses in the “crimes against persons” category, homicides in Montgomery County increased from 22 in 2022 to 29 in 2023, a 32 percent increase, a report to the Montgomery County Council said.

Over the past five years, the lowest number of homicides in Montgomery County was 15 in 2019, while the highest number was 34 in 2021.

Of the 29 homicide victims in 2023, 20 were Black, seven were Latino, and two were white, according to the report. Two of the homicide victims were under 18, but 10 were between 18 and 21. Twenty-five of the 29 homicide victims were male, the report said.

In neighboring jurisdictions, the District of Columbia saw a 35 percent increase in homicides, from 203 in 2022 to 274 in 2023. Prince George’s County reported 117 homicides in 2023, up from 103 homicides in 2022.

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The increases in homicides in Montgomery County, Prince George’s County and D.C. are happening as crime has started to decrease across other parts of the nation. The Council on Criminal Justice surveyed 38 cities, with the results showing that homicides fell 10 percent nationally in 2023.

As for other crimes against persons in Montgomery County, aggravated assault increased by 12.6 percent, simple assault increased by 7.6 percent, and assault by intimidation increased by 24.5 percent.

Rape and other sex offenses in Montgomery County decreased by 9 percent in 2023 compared to 2022, according to the data.

For crimes against property, there were significant increases in auto theft (131.1 percent increase), stolen property (94.7 percent), shoplifting (38.1 percent), carjacking (28.6 percent), and non-commercial robbery (27.4 percent).

“The increase is pretty bad,” said Susan Fraag, a Montgomery Council legislative analyst, during a public safety committee meeting on Monday, according to Montgomery County Media.

Montgomery County Police Chief Marcus Jones said there are 128 vacancies in the patrol department of the Montgomery County Police Department. The vacancies are being dealt with by recruiting retired officers to work on a contract basis, Jones said, according to Montgomery County Media.

On the positive side, there were significant decreases in certain offenses in Montgomery County, including forgery (50.2 percent decrease), fraud and identity theft (28.1 percent decrease), and commercial robbery (20.7 percent decrease).

Drug offenses also declined in 2023, particularly distribution, which fell by 29 percent, and possession, which fell by 16.5 percent.

However, opioid overdoses continue to rise. In 2023, there were 96 fatal overdoses and 250 non-fatal overdoses in Montgomery County, which represents a 28 percent increase from 2022. Fatal overdoses were up 19 percent.

Among youth under 21 years old in Montgomery County, fatal overdoses increased 9 percent and non-fatal overdoses increased 132 percent in 2023.

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