Historic year: Jacksonville sees lowest number of homicides this century

Historic year: Jacksonville sees lowest number of homicides this century

EDITOR’S NOTE: This story will be updated slightly throughout the year as developments are made in the investigations.

Whether he’s addressing the public about some senseless killing or holding someone accountable, Sheriff T.K. Waters consistently says “one life is too many.” Well, in 2024 way fewer lives were taken abruptly in Jacksonville.

So few that it’s the lowest number at least in this century and likely much further back than that. The unofficial 83 homicides halts a disturbing trend of 12 straight years of exceeding 100 victims and is the lowest since 2011 when 86 people were killed, according to Times-Union records. It also represents a 47% decrease from 2023’s 157 homicides.

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“I think it’s amazing,” Sheriff T.K. Waters said. “I think it’s a testament to the hard work of the men and women of this agency every single day. I think it’s a testament to our community and how they respond to violence when it takes place in our city. And I think it’s a testament to the good lord and how he’s guiding us along the way.”

He attributed it in part to how they’ve adjusted their focus and execution.

“How we change and how we approach violence,” Waters said. “How we approach those that we know are committing the violence. How we look at what’s going on and what they’re doing and how we’re paying very close attention to what they’re doing and what’s going on. We’re able to stop some things before they happen, a lot of things before they happen.”

2024 homicides: A closer look at the 83 slain in Jacksonville

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It’s also about accountability, he stressed.

“A no-nonsense attitude to holding people accountable for crime,” Waters said. “I think we hold our police officers accountable, we hold our community accountable and we hold ourselves accountable. And then we tell our public about it. All that is very important, all that plays a big part in how we are successfully being able to do this.”

After four of the previous five years having 150-plus homicides, the next question is how can this be sustainable?

“Continue to improve and continue to use the technology that we’ve been able to get a hold of to get better,” the sheriff said. “Like I’ve said before, our core values are community-focused … and we’re always going to work to improve. So when we go into the next year and we notice somewhere we’re falling short, then we make that improvement and continue to grow.

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“Continuing to grow as an agency itself, numbers-wise, as our city grows, we have to grow,” he continued. “I know that’s not pleasant to some people, but that’s just the facts. And we don’t want to lose control over what we’ve been able to accomplish so far. All that’s very important moving forward.”

Sheriff T.K. Waters, center, and the men and women of the Jacksonville Sheriff's Office lead a Neighborhood Crime Prevention Walk through the San Souci neighborhood on Oct. 26. The city's 2024 homicide total was cut nearly in half from 2023.

Sheriff T.K. Waters, center, and the men and women of the Jacksonville Sheriff’s Office lead a Neighborhood Crime Prevention Walk through the San Souci neighborhood on Oct. 26. The city’s 2024 homicide total was cut nearly in half from 2023.

Goals for the new year, he said, include continuing to “forge strong relationships in our community, to continue transparency to get even better and to keep this city safe and the people of this city safe.”

He cited a 57% decrease in murders, which are classified differently than homicides and don’t include justifiable deaths, since 2022.

“Historically this is a big deal for us,” Waters reiterated. “… Never since I’ve been here have I seen that before, when it comes to murders that is. … “Now, one life is too much. We don’t put a number on a life.”

What does Mayor Donna Deegan say about Jacksonville’s dramatic decrease in homicides?

Jacksonville Mayor Donna Deegan hugs Sheriff T.K. Waters after a budget address meeting at City Hall.

Jacksonville Mayor Donna Deegan hugs Sheriff T.K. Waters after a budget address meeting at City Hall.

In her second year as Jacksonville’s mayor, Donna Deegan credited the collaborative efforts of the Sheriff’s Office, city and community.

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“This achievement is a testament to the tireless efforts of the Jacksonville Sheriff’s Office, whose dedication to innovative policing strategies and community engagement has been instrumental in improving public safety across our neighborhoods,” she said.

“Equally important are the city’s targeted investments in crime prevention programs that address the root causes of violence,” Deegan said. “From creating opportunities for youth to expanding access to mental health resources, these efforts are helping to build stronger, safer communities where everyone has the chance to thrive.”

It’s also about the citizens who are often reminded about violence in the city.

“This progress belongs to the people of Jacksonville. The neighbors, families and community leaders who have come together, often in difficult circumstances, to make change happen,” the mayor said. “Our community’s willingness to collaborate, share ideas and invest in solutions has shown what’s possible when we work as one city toward a common goal.”

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There’s more work to be done though.

“The Journey Forward initiative will play a vital role in shaping the path ahead by focusing on how progress is being made and scaling those efforts by addressing disparities, preventing crime before it starts and strengthening the bonds that hold our communities together,” she said. “This is the time to continue building on this momentum to create a Jacksonville where safety and well-being are realities for everyone.”

Deegan also noted that homicides are down across the country because of federal investments that have been made into crime reduction and funding for more officers and initiatives.

What does State Attorney Melissa Nelson say about Jacksonville’s homicide totals?

Jacksonville Sheriff T.K. Waters and State Attorney Melissa Nelson conduct an April 2, 2024, news briefing to discuss an arrest from a 1996 cold case murder.

Jacksonville Sheriff T.K. Waters and State Attorney Melissa Nelson conduct an April 2, 2024, news briefing to discuss an arrest from a 1996 cold case murder.

Now in her third term as 4th Judicial Circuit state attorney, Melissa Nelson said she is encouraged by a such a remarkable turnaround.

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“This is an historic reduction of violence in our city,” Nelson said.

She attributes some of it to the efforts of her office.

“Targeting, prosecuting, and incapacitating violent offenders has been, and is, our top priority,” she said. “We have engaged in years-long strategic and collaborative violence reduction strategies, including partnerships with law enforcement, investments in crime gun intelligence and technology, targeted and novel prosecutions, and successful interventions.

“We work closely with the city’s Crime Gun Intelligence Center — which we helped bring to Jacksonville in 2019 — to solve shootings and murders,” Nelson continued. “More recently, the office advocated for the creation of a Gun Violence Offender Court with the goal of ensuring swift and certain justice. Our Targeted Prosecution division, created in 2017, in conjunction with law enforcement, has dismantled some of the most dangerous groups and gangs in Jacksonville; these successes have undoubtedly thwarted untold shootings and murders.”

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She said proactive policing and successful protections have been a major component of this downward trend. She cited a record number of murder and shooting cases being prosecuted in 2024, “achieving an almost perfect conviction rate in homicide trials.”

“We remain focused on those strategies and initiatives that have brought us to this moment, and we will not rest until the numbers are even lower,” Nelson said.

‘Leadership makes a difference’

The community has taken note of the decrease in violence and of the presence of its sheriff. AJ Jordan, outreach coordinator for MAD DADS Jacksonville (Men Against Destruction Defending Against Drugs and Social-Disorder), gives much of the credit to Waters.

“I think a lot of it has to do with the current administration. By far, T.K. Waters is the best sheriff this city has seen in a while,” Jordan said. “He’s consistent, he shows up, he cares, he’s retraining the staff, the police officers on the street are more friendlier, more interactive with our community. We’ve still got some things we still need to work out, but overall the transition that you’ve seen in JSO is amazing to me and MAD DADS.”

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He also credited Jacksonville residents.

“The community is finally getting tired of all this crime, whether it’s murder, rape, taking guns out of cars, you name it,” Jordan said. “Crime is down I believe across the board. … So I think our citizens are starting to buy in to we want to be a safe city for all citizens. Whether you live on the Northside, Westside, Eastside or the Beaches, we want to be safe. We want everybody to be able to walk their kids in the park, walk their dog at night.

“Sheriff Waters and his team, they’re on the forefront of that,” he continued. “They’re always present. Sheriff Waters, no matter what it is, you see him at 2 o’clock in the morning out there with his commanders doing news briefings, you see him out in the public just walking around shaking people’s hands. Leadership really makes a difference. He’s just an example of what leadership should be in our city.”

Jordan said crime can go either way but thinks this momentum can be carried forward.

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“As long as the sheriff continues what he’s been doing, staying present, keep training his officers, keep the transparencies going, the citizens keep making the phone calls to Crime Stoppers, MAD DADS, JSO and we all just continue to be a unit in our city, we will see the crime steadily going down in 2025,” he said.

What do we know about Jacksonville’s 2024 homicides?

Here’s a breakdown of the Times-Union’s findings on what has been the norm in Jacksonville. Note that 10 cases are still pending classification as of New Year’s Day, so one or two may fall off or be updated to be justifiable once those investigations are complete.

For instance, the Dec. 6 death of Beauty Max store owner Ilson Miriam Kim, 64, could be removed and changed to a vehicular homicide if it is determined there wasn’t an intent to run her over when she was trying to stop shoplifters.

It also means that a few details in some of the pending cases have not been provided like age, race, gender, cause and location — so some of the numbers won’t add up.

Century mark

The city’s stunning turnaround puts an end to 12 straight years of eclipsing 100 homicides and eight straight years with at least 120. In the last decade, Jacksonville has lost  1,498 lives as a result of homicides. That’s an average of about 150 a year and a person killed every couple of days. The high since The Florida Times-Union began keeping track in 2003 was 2020’s 177 and the previous low was 86 in 2011.

Deadliest and safest ZIP codes

The 32209 ZIP code in the Moncrief/Grand Park area maintained its spot as the most dangerous place to live in Jacksonville with 12 homicides, but well below the previous year’s 30. It finished ahead of eight each in 32205 covering Avondale, Murray Hill and parts of Riverside and 32218 on the Northside, whereas the Westside’s 32210 finished second in 2023 with 14. Several had zero: 32212, 32216, 32223, 32226, 32227, 32228, 32234 and 32258.

Deadliest part of town: 32209 ZIP code proves to be Jacksonville’s killing fields year after year

The totals do not include the out-of-jurisdiction Beaches communities, which had two combined.

Age of victims

Much like 2023 when 54 of the people killed were 21 to 30 years old, that was the most vulnerable age range in 2024 with 22 deaths. Next was 41 to 50 years old with 17 casualties — different from 2023 when the 31-to-40 age range produced the second most with 37 people killed.

Twelve victims 17 or younger had their lives cut short, two fewer than in 2023.

Victims, race and gender

African Americans continued to suffer the most deaths with 54, but well behind the 129 in 2023. White victims totaled 20 compared to 23 the previous year. Hispanics, at five homicides, equaled the total in 2023. One victim was Asian. Eighteen of the victims were female, one more than in 2023. The males were at 64, considerably down from 140 the prior year.

Arrests, race and gender

Police made murder, manslaughter or child neglect arrests in 30 cases by the end of the year. Of the 36 suspects, there were 25 Black males, six white males, two Hispanic males, three Black females and one white female.

Fatal police shootings

Officers killed four suspects: three Black men and one Hispanic. That’s down from the eight killed in 2023, four Black men and four white. One of the shootings was not by a Jacksonville sheriff’s officer, but rather a U.S. deputy marshal and St. Johns County deputy as part of a task force attempting to make an arrest in the city.

Justifiable

Several cases have yet to be ruled on, but seven have been deemed justifiable such as self-defense. In the previous year, 21 homicides were eventually ruled justifiable.

Cause of death

Shootings were responsible for 59 homicides (not counting police shootings), followed by seven with no cause provided, six beatings, four stabbings, one set on fire, one overdose and one run over.

That compares to 123 shooting homicides in 2023, 12 stabbings, six beatings and eight with no cause provided.

There were five murder-suicides in 2024, compared to four in 2023. Cases that involved some form of domestic relations dropped by one to 19.

Worst and best months

May and October topped the calendar year with 11 homicides each followed by 10 in March. The year before saw 18 people killed in the worst month September and 16 each in January and October.

July was the safest month at only three deaths, while the previous year was June with six killings.

About this data

This information is gathered from Sheriff’s Office and court records. As a footnote, the Times-Union’s numbers vary somewhat from the Sheriff’s Office due to some procedural differences. For the last two years the Sheriff’s Office’s numbers do not include fatal police shootings even as justifiable homicides or pending classification. Since these are factual homicides under the law, the Times-Union is not changing the way it reports them.

The Sheriff’s Office also does not list the Feb. 27 shooting death of 28-year-old Anthony Lloyd Burgess Jr. at the Westwood Apartments on Lane Avenue, although two men are charged with murder in the case. They and Burgess were attempting to rob a drug dealer who defended himself killing one of them, according to court records. He was charged with with trafficking in cannabis with a firearm while the two surviving home invaders were charged with murder because their accomplice was killed in the act of committing a felony. The Sheriff’s Office said it is not being listed because the individual who shot Burgess was also committing crimes at the time. Under the law, it is still a homicide, so the Times-Union is counting it.

Homicides in the Beaches municipalities are not included because they are out of the Sheriff’s Office’s jurisdiction. However, only two homicides occurred in Jacksonville Beach in 2024. Please also note that addresses for where the killings occurred often are not direct but the block that the Sheriff’s Office provides.

The other terminology to note is the difference between a homicide and a murder: They are not interchangeable. Murders do not include justifiable actions such as self-defense or just cause; homicides do. So homicide numbers will always be higher than the murder totals that law enforcement agencies include in their Uniform Crime Reporting to the FBI.

This article originally appeared on Florida Times-Union: Jacksonville sees lowest number of homicides this century

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