IMPD is seeing double-digit declines in most crime categories in India, with a notable exception

INDIANAPOLIS — Nearly halfway through the year, Indianapolis has seen a double-digit decline in its most violent crime categories, with only one crime still a serious problem.

Starting last year, car thefts have seen a huge increase, and this year the trend continues with a 38% increase.

This number is impressive because so many other crimes have actually decreased.

A small pile of broken glass in the parking lot of the Indy apartment complex on the north side marks the spot where someone stole Demetrius Brownlow’s Hyundai.

“Yes, it’s frustrating because now I have to go through the process hoping to get him back,” Brownlow said.

Demetrius is not the only victim of a car theft at night. Stack of Police Reports from Tuesday Morning Shows In just 3 hours, IMPD received 7 reports of stolen cars.

The department issued a public alert last year when thefts of Kia and Hyundai cars first began to spike.

Brownlow noticed this tendency but hoped he wouldn’t fall victim.

“Yes, but I thought I would be lucky, but no, I wasn’t lucky,” Brownlow said.

This year, while overall property crimes citywide declined slightly by 0.8%, car thefts continue to rise.

“Kia and Hyundai certainly contributed to a large portion of these car thefts. We want to remind people to take advantage of the free steering wheel locks,” said IMPD Lt. Shane Foley.

In addition to auto theft, IMPD reports that almost all violent crimes saw a significant decline in 2024.

Criminal homicides decreased by 14.3%.

The number of non-fatal shootings decreased by 12.3%.

The number of violent attacks decreased by as much as 34.6%.

Robberies decreased by 18.3%.

Overall, violent crime decreased by 28.5%.

“We want to see these numbers continue to decline, so we hope that the work of our detectives and our collaboration with the community, as well as the use of technology and other tools, will allow us to continue to monitor this trend,” Foley said.

“There is still a lot of work to be done,” said Aaron Williams of the Peace City Coalition.

While anti-violence advocate Aaron Williams praised the current trend in violent crime, he stressed that there is still work to be done to ensure the numbers continue to decline.

“This is the time to be more vigilant than ever. We cannot let our guard down. We need to redouble our efforts,” Williams said.

Investigating fewer crimes also led to more cases being solved. So far this year, IMPD reports that the homicide clearance rate has increased dramatically.

In 2022, the customs clearance rate was only 43.4%, in 2023 it reached 50%, and this year it increased to 72.5%.