L.A. homicides drop to lowest level in decades

Decline mirrors other cities'. Experts credit first responders, social services, other factors.

- BY LIBOR JANY AND RICHARD WINTON

IRFAN KHAN Los Angeles Times

LAPD'S tally doesn't include vehicular homicides, which bring the total to 313.

The city of Los Angeles just recorded its lowest homicide total in more than half a century, mirroring precipitous drops in many other large cities nationwide last year — and sparking a range of theories about what’s going on.

According to tentative numbers reported by the Los Angeles Police Department through Dec. 31, the city tallied 230 homicides in 2025—a nearly 19% decrease from the year before. Police investigators are still reviewing the circumstances of several deaths, but if the current figure holds up, it would be the fewest killings since 1966, when the population was almost 30% smaller.

Measuring per capita, it was the city’s safest year since 1959.

LAPD Chief Jim McDonnell said the reduction in homicides is “not the result of any single action, but the collective work of our first responders and followup investigators, our community partners, and the residents who continue to step forward and engage with us.”

The numbers might come as a surprise to those who visit the LAPD’s website. Since switching to a new federal reporting system, the department includes more than just violent killings in its count.

Department officials said the website data now include some traffic deaths that weren’t counted under the old reporting system, such as suspected cases of vehicular manslaughter or crashes in which the driver was found to have been drunk or otherwise criminally negligent. With these “vehicular homicides” included, the total number of killings recorded citywide last year grows to 313—a discrepancy that has some residents concerned the department isn’t giving a full crime picture.