Crime in DC Drops Below Pandemic Levels as City Sees Three-Week Stretch Without Homicide

Violent crime in Washington, D.C., continued its downward trend early in 2026, according to Metropolitan Police Department crime data, with the city posting one of its lowest homicide counts to start a year in a decade.

In January, the nation’s capital recorded only two homicides, one of the lowest monthly totals on record.

This continues a multiyear downward trend for the city, which is still recovering from a peak of 274 killings in 2023, which marked the city’s deadliest year in more than two decades.

D.C. went more than three weeks without a homicide at the start of 2026. The city previously saw a similar period without a killing following the deployment of the National Guard in late 2025.

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The three-week streak ended Jan. 21 after a fatal shooting in Northeast Washington. During the same time period in 2025, there had been nine homicides.

Other violent crimes and property crimes also saw a significant drop at the start of 2026, marking an overall 600-point drop in crime in the last year. Assault with a deadly weapon is the only crime on the rise this month.

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