Mobile 2024 homicides exceed 2023 numbers year to date
MOBILE, Ala. (WKRG) — While the Mobile Police Department boasted 2023 as having the “largest decrease in crime for a single year… since 1988,” 2024 might not be on the same track.
One day after touting the “historic milestone,” Mobile’s homicide number reached 13.
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Mobile is currently up three homicides at the end of March 2024 compared to the same time in 2023. This year, MPD has reported 13 homicides compared to the 10 homicides reported this time last year.
Of this year’s homicides, five victims were under the age of 21 with the youngest being 13.
Of the 12 suspects arrested in those homicides, two were under the age of 19, and four were in their 20s. The youngest suspect is 16 years old.
This came after a Tuesday night shooting on Oakland Drive left a 20-year-old dead and an 18-year-old behind bars.
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Mother Involved Against Gun Violence Founder Nija Hill said 2024 has seen 13 homicides too many.
“It seems like it’s the new normal to pick up a gun,” Hill said. “We’re not supposed to be taking each other’s lives.”
Hill said children are just as likely to fall victim to violent crime as anyone else, but she said that number could be reduced when parents get involved in their kids’ lives.
“It’s important to know what your child is feeling because sometimes we can prevent them from going out here and doing the things that are happening,” Hill said.
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Hill pointed to the internet as being a place where some children may find themselves in trouble.
“The internet is a place where they belittle each other,” she said. “And you know, you see something, and you want something from somebody else.”
Hill’s 16-year-old son was killed in September 2021.
“The young man was 15 that killed my son, and he’s being charged as an adult,” Hill said.
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16 years old is the youngest age that a juvenile could be automatically charged as an adult if a crime meets certain criteria.
14 years old is the youngest possible age that a juvenile can be charged as an adult, but only if a judge approves it in a juvenile court hearing.
WKRG News 5 did try to set up an interview with Mobile Police Chief Paul Prine, but he was unavailable.
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