NASHVILLE, Tenn. (WKRN) — Preliminary data shows at least a dozen homicides were reported in Nashville and Davidson County during the month of August — the most out of any month so far this year.
Several of those homicides occurred within the last few weeks of August, with some being just hours apart. A 34-year-old woman was gunned down by more than 50 shots in Bordeaux and a 41-year-old man was found dead from a gunshot wound in a South Nashville alley, all within 24 hours.
The 12 homicides investigated in August is also double the number reported during the same month in 2023. But while reports seemed to climb over the last four weeks, the overall homicide rate in Metro Nashville has continued to remain lower than it was last year.
By Aug. 31, 2024, a total of 64 homicides had been reported in Nashville and Davidson County — a 9.9% decrease compared to the same time last year. Data indicates some other crimes like auto theft may also be starting to trend downward compared to rates in 2023.
Those statistics are derived from unofficial reports in the Metro Nashville Police Department’s (MNPD) weekly crime initiative book. The weekly report prepared by the MNPD Crime Analysis Section provides preliminary data on all part one offenses.
Part one offenses include homicide, rape, robbery, aggravated assault, burglary, larceny, motor vehicle theft and arson. However, arson offenses are not included in public MNPD Uniform Crime Reports (UCR) because those offenses are investigated by the Nashville Fire Department.
Although the data is reviewed by the MNPD for accuracy and completeness, it does not reflect official counts. Below is a full breakdown of the crimes that have been reported in Nashville and Davidson County during the first eight months of 2024.
Violent crime
Violent crime is composed of four offenses: homicide, rape, aggravated assault, and robbery. According to the Uniform Crime Reporting (UCR) Program, violent crimes are those offenses which involve force or threat of force.
According to unofficial reports, the rate of violent crime in Nashville and Davidson County is slightly lower than it was this time last year. The data reflects a 4.9% decrease, with a total of 6,026 violent crimes reported by Aug. 31, 2023, and 5,729 reported by Aug. 31, 2024.
The largest drop in violent crime so far this year appears to be in the MNPD’s Madison Precinct, where preliminary reports reflect a 15.2% decrease. There is one police precinct that has seen an increase in violent crime, although it’s only a slight jump.
Violent crime has gone up about 3.8% in the police department’s Hermitage Precinct.
Homicide
Unofficial reports show the homicide rate in Nashville and Davidson County is down about 9.9% compared to last year, with 71 homicides reported by Aug. 31, 2023, and 64 reported about eight months into 2024.
At least 12 of those homicides occurred in August — the most out of any month so far this year. That's also double the number of homicides that were reported during the same four-week period last year, representing a 100% increase.
The city ended 2023 with a little over 100 homicides, continuing a trend that started in 2020. Since then, there have been over 100 homicides reported every year. MNPD’s crime stats show 2017 was the first time Nashville had seen over 100 homicides in almost two decades.
The Midtown Hills Precinct saw the largest rise in homicide last year, with a 100% increase compared to 2022. However, that rise can be attributed to a mass shooting at The Covenant School on March 27 that resulted in the deaths of three adults and three children.
Preliminary reports show there have been five homicides reported in the Midtown Hills Precinct so far in 2024 — a 58.3% decrease from this time last year.
The majority of homicides reported in the first eight months of the year have been in the North, Hermitage and South Precincts. Altogether, there have been 38 homicides reported in just those three areas.
Nearly 56.3% of homicide victims have been between the ages of 18 and 34. Unofficial reports show one victim has been 65 years or older and 18.7% of victims have been teens and children between the ages of 0 and 17.
Seven of the homicides reported so far this year have been recorded as domestic-related.
Rape
Unofficial data shows the number of rapes reported in Nashville and Davidson County has increased compared to this time last year, with 360 reports made by Aug. 31, 2023, and 447 reports made by Aug. 31, 2024.
That’s 61 more reports since the beginning of August, or an about 16% jump. The largest increase has been in the police department’s Midtown Hills Precinct, where reports of rape have risen by 64.7% compared to this time last year.
That’s also a nearly 460% rise compared to the end of April, when there were only 15 reports made in the Midtown Hills Precinct. As of Aug. 31, 2024, preliminary data shows there have been 84 rapes reported in the area.
Only two police precincts have received close to as many reports, with 80 rapes reported so far this year in the South Precinct and 71 in the Hermitage Precinct. A little over half of all complaints have been filed in the South, Midtown Hills and Hermitage Precincts.
Aggravated assault
There have been 4,431 incidences of aggravated assault reported in Nashville and Davidson County so far this year — an about 6.3% decrease from the 4,727 aggravated assaults reported by Aug. 31, 2023, according to unofficial reports.
The FBI’s UCR Program defines aggravated assault as an unlawful attack by one person upon another for the purpose of inflicting severe or aggravated bodily injury. A large portion of aggravated assaults have been reported in the MNPD’s South Precinct with about 1,087 incidents.
Every police precinct has seen a decrease in reports, expect one. The Hermitage Precinct has reported a 1.3% increase in incidences of aggravated assault.
Robbery
The total number of robberies reported in Nashville and Davidson County has dropped about 9.3% compared to this time last year, according to preliminary reports. Overall, there have been 787 reports made, which is 81 less than the number of robberies reported by Aug. 31, 2023.
The FBI’s UCR Program defines robbery as the taking or attempting to take anything of value from a person by force or threat of force, and by putting the victim in fear.
The largest drop in robberies appears to be in the Madison Precinct, where unofficial reports indicate a 31.3% decrease. County-wide, commercial robberies have dropped about 33.3% compared to this time last year, while street robberies are down about 6.2%.
However, three police precincts have reported an increase in robberies. The West Precinct has been hit the hardest, with a 33.3% increase in reports compared to last year. Meanwhile, the North Precinct has reported an 8.1% increase, and the Hermitage Precinct has seen a 5.6% rise.
Property crime
Property crime includes the offenses of burglary, larceny, auto theft and arson. According to the UCR Program, the object of theft-type offenses is the taking of money or property, but there is no force or threat of force against the victims.
Unofficial reports show property crime in Nashville and Davidson County has increased by about 6.3% compared to this time last year. In total, 21,231 incidents have been reported compared to the 19,982 incidents reported by Aug. 31, 2023 — a rise partially driven by an increase in auto theft.
The majority of property offenses have been reported in the police department’s South, Hermitage and Midtown Hills Precincts. Those three areas account for 10,773 incidences, or a little over half of all reports received so far this year.
However, the area that has seen the largest overall rise in property crime compared to last year is the MNPD’s Madison Precinct at about 22.3%.
Burglary
Burglary involves the unlawful entry of a home or business. Preliminary reports show there has been an about 8.5% increase in reports of burglary compared to this time last year.
The 2,020 burglaries reported so far this year is also an 11.4% jump from the beginning of August when there were 1,814 reported. Overall, the largest increase in reports has been in the MNPD’s North Precinct, where data shows a 50.4% increase in burglary.
While commercial burglary has been down county-wide for much of 2024, unofficial data indicates it is now rising with a 7.7% increase compared to last year. In the North Precinct alone, commercial burglaries have increased by nearly 69.1%.
Residential burglary is also up about 9.1% county-wide, with the North and Madison Precincts seeing the largest rises. Three areas, the Central, Hermitage and East Precincts, have seen a decrease in burglaries.
Larceny
Unofficial data indicates reports of larceny in Nashville and Davidson County are not far off from this time last year, with a 5.2% increase. Examples of larceny are thefts of bicycles, motor vehicle parts and accessories, shoplifting or pocket-picking.
While there has not been much of a change county-wide, reports have increased in nearly every police precinct except the Midtown Hills and Central Precincts. Reports of larceny have dropped about 9.4% in the Midtown Hills Precinct and about 2.3% in the Central Precinct.
Meanwhile, preliminary reports show the area with the largest rise in reports of larceny has been the Madison Precinct. In total, larceny has increased about 19% in the area.
Auto theft
Auto theft has been one of the fastest-rising crimes in Nashville and Davidson County for much of 2024, according to unofficial data. However, reports have been decreasing over the past few weeks.
In total, 3,484 auto thefts have been reported so far this year, compared to the 3,175 thefts that were reported by Aug. 31, 2023. That’s a 9.7% increase compared to this time last year, but a significant change compared to the start of 2024 when thefts were up over 120%.
Preliminary data shows reports of auto theft have dropped nearly 20% when compared to the same eight-week period between July and August last year. The Metro Nashville area ended 2023 with close to 6,000 auto thefts — a nearly 75% increase from 2022.
According to the unofficial reports, four of the eight police precincts have seen an over 15% increase in auto thefts within the first eight months of 2024. The East Precinct has been hit the hardest, with a 58.3% rise in thefts compared to this time last year.
The Midtown Hills Precinct has seen the most significant decrease in thefts, with an about 13.8% drop from last year.