Police: 80 people murdered in Jacksonville since beginning of 2016

Jacksonville Sheriff's Office reports there have been 90 homicides this year

JACKSONVILLE, Fla. – There have been 90 homicides, 80 of which were murders, since the beginning of 2016, according to the Jacksonville Sheriff's Office. 

A 40-year-old man fatally shot in the doorway of his Brierwood apartment Sunday night was the 90th homicide this year, police said. 

The Sheriff's Office said there had been 70 murders out of 82 homicides at this time last year, which shows that the number of homicides has risen. 

Homicide is a legal term for slaying or killing. Murder is defined as a malicious, premeditated homicide. 

News4Jax crime and safety analyst Gil Smith said homicide crimes, typically, do not follow a pattern, but those involved will probably know each other. 

"Homicides vary. They happen for so many reasons. About a few of them are domestic, where the person knows the suspect," Smith said. 

The Sheriff's Office reported that there were 16 homicides in the 32209 area code and there have been 10 homicides in the same area code this year.

Most of the cases were murder, domestic violence or drive-by shootings, according to police. 

Smith, who has decades of police experience, said it's possible that most of the homicides could have been resolved through communication.

"Sometimes people just don't know how to resolve conflicts. With people today, they just don't value human life in the way that they did in the past," Smith said. 

The city of Jacksonville has a Community Affairs Division, which includes volunteers from the Sheriff's Office, that offers free crime-prevention programs. For more information on the programs, call 904-630-2162.


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