Gun-related crimes in Denver are on the rise, which has police and city leaders bracing for what could be a violent summer.
Just this past weekend, four people were hurt in two different shootings in just 12 hours: three at Park Avenue and Lawrence Street downtown and one on King Street.
The violence illustrates a problem that Denver police have been watching since the first of the year: The most recent Denver police numbers show that aggravated assault crimes involving guns are up 73% so far this year compared to the three-year average from 2019-2021.
As of Sunday, Denver has seen 858 gun-related crimes, compared to the three-year average of 495 for the same period.
Fatal shootings are also on the increase and 59% of the victims are Black, according to Denver police numbers, even though African-Americans make up less than 10% of Denver’s city population.
Because of this critical situation, Denver Police Chief Paul Pazen, Mayor Hancock and representatives from the Attorney General’s office recently met with local faith-based groups, the local NAACP and community leaders to get help.
So far this year, 39 people have been killed by guns in Denver, which Pazen said is on pace to give 2022 the unwanted distinction of being the city’s bloodiest ever.
“We’ve had dramatic increases in shootings and a significant increase in murder. If the violence continues at this pace it will exceed any year recorded,” Pazen told The Denver Gazette. The most gun deaths Denver has ever seen was 1981 when 101 people were shot and killed.
Pazen blames the frightening increase on the fact that criminals are getting their hands on guns illegally. Police data indicates that 42% of people arrested for murder are convicted felons and more than 38% were under some kind of supervision.
“Studies will tell you there’s a relatively small number of individuals responsible for a disproportionate number of violent crimes. If you address those offenders, you can lower the impact,” he said.
Most of 2022’s aggravated assaults were committed in two hot spots: downtown Denver and on East Colfax Avenue from Syracuse to Yosemite on the border of Aurora.
Meanwhile, three other areas which previously were clusters for violent crime are seeing less violence. Those are the areas near Alameda and Federal, the corner of Peoria and 47th Avenue near Martin Luther King Jr. Boulevard and Holly Street.
Pazen attributed the decrease in violence in those pockets of the city to community-led programs, like Violence Interrupters and Struggle of Love Foundation, which help by giving at-risk kids opportunities and by including families in discussions about mental health, drugs and guns.
Aurora is seeing similar jumps in gun-related crime, also up 73% with 19 murders through the weekend ending May 23 compared to 11 by this time last year.
Colorado Springs has had 14 gun-related murders so far this year through May 23, compared with six last year, and 65 non-fatal shootings in 2022 compared with 44 through this time last year. That’s according to statistics supplied by CSPD Officer Elizabeth McGregor.
There is good news in Denver in that police have solved around 75% of homicides that have been committed so far this year, which is above the national average of 60%. Pazen said that homicides happen for a variety of reasons, not just one or two.
"They're not all gang-related. They're not all youth-related. They're not all drug-related or domestic-violence related,” said Pazen. “Bottom line we’ve got to hold these criminals accountable.”
