Crime in

Atlanta, Georgia Atlanta ( ) is the List of capitals in the United States, capital and List of municipalities in Georgia (U.S. state), most populous city in the U.S. state of Georgia (U.S. state), Georgia. It is the county seat, seat of Fulton County, Georg ...

is above the national

median The median of a set of numbers is the value separating the higher half from the lower half of a Sample (statistics), data sample, a statistical population, population, or a probability distribution. For a data set, it may be thought of as the “ ...

and has been a major problem for the city since the middle 20th century. Atlanta's public safety improvement between 2001 and 2010 occurred at more than twice the rate of the rest of the country. After ranking in the top five highest violent crime cities for most of the previous three decades, in 2009 Atlanta ranked 31st, and in 2015, 24/7 Wall Street ranked it 19th. While various news sources report rankings by crime rate, FBI strongly cautions against comparing different cities' crime rates, as such a misuse of bare statistics ignores various important factors, such as population density, degree of urbanization, composition of population, economic conditions, etc.

History

During the 1970s, like with many large cities within the

United States The United States of America (USA), also known as the United States (U.S.) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It is a federal republic of 50 U.S. state, states and a federal capital district, Washington, D.C. The 48 ...

, Atlanta's population began to decline. By 1990, the population was 394,017, down almost 20% from its population in 1970, which was 496,973. In addition, the city center and surrounding areas began to go through an

urban decay Urban decay (also known as urban rot, urban death or urban blight) is the sociological process by which a previously functioning city, or part of a city, falls into disrepair and decrepitude. There is no single process that leads to urban decay. ...

, and crime spiked significantly throughout the 1980s. Along with many other major cities in the United States, Atlanta was hard hit by the

crack epidemic The crack epidemic was a surge of crack cocaine use in major cities across the United States throughout the entirety of the 1980s and the early 1990s. This resulted in several social consequences, such as increasing crime and violence in Americ ...

of most of the 1980s to early 1990s. In 1994, Atlanta was ranked the most dangerous city in the country by the Morgan Quitno Press. In 1997, drug-related crime in

metro Atlanta Metro Atlanta, designated by the United States Office of Management and Budget as the Atlanta–Sandy Springs–Roswell metropolitan statistical area, is the most populous metropolitan statistical area in the U.S. state of Georgia and the sixt ...

increased slightly, in part due to Atlanta becoming an important distribution center for

cocaine Cocaine is a tropane alkaloid and central nervous system stimulant, derived primarily from the leaves of two South American coca plants, ''Erythroxylum coca'' and ''Erythroxylum novogranatense, E. novogranatense'', which are cultivated a ...

, and other related

drug A drug is any chemical substance other than a nutrient or an essential dietary ingredient, which, when administered to a living organism, produces a biological effect. Consumption of drugs can be via insufflation (medicine), inhalation, drug i ...

s imported from Mexico. These increases were mostly seen in Fulton, Gwinnett, DeKalb, Cobb, and Clayton counties. Many

law enforcement Law enforcement is the activity of some members of the government or other social institutions who act in an organized manner to enforce the law by investigating, deterring, rehabilitating, or punishing people who violate the rules and norms gove ...

agencies in the area have joined forces together with the

Atlanta Police Department The Atlanta Police Department (APD) is a law enforcement agency in the city of Atlanta, Georgia (U.S. state), Georgia, United States. The city shifted from its rural-based Marshal and Deputy Marshal model at the end of the 19th century. In 1873, ...

in an effort to decrease the overall crime in metro Atlanta. In addition, due to large amounts of revitalization projects in the city core, crime continued to fall, even amidst the hard economic times of the late-2000s/early 2010s. In April 2025, city and state officials celebrated the grand opening of the $118 million Atlanta Public Safety Training Center. For the first time, this center will facilitate local police officers and firefighters training together.

Policing

The city is served by the

. In 2013, the APD had 2,000 officers,Becca J. G. Godwin
51 Atlanta homicides from 2016 remain unsolved. These are the victims
''Atlanta Journal Constitution'' (February 15, 2017).Jonathan Shapiro
2,000 Atlanta Police Officers, But Gripes Remain Over Pay
WABE (October 25, 2013). but the number of officers has decreased since that time. Mayor

Kasim Reed Mohammed Kasim Reed (born June 10, 1969) is an American lawyer and politician who served as the 59th List of mayors of Atlanta, mayor of Atlanta, Georgia (U.S. state), Georgia's state capital and List of municipalities in Georgia (U.S. state), ...

has identified an increase in the number of officers to 2,000 as a goal for the city. Although city data shows that APD attrition rates have improved from the 2000s to 2013, morale issues within the police department has persisted due to officer dissatisfaction with salaries. About 45 percent of officers hired between 2005 and 2013 left the force by 2017.Christian Boone
Murders in Atlanta are way up, but overall crime is way down
''Atlanta Journal-Constitution'' (January 31, 2017). Atlanta is divided into six police patrol zones. According to data collected by a police violence tracking website, there were 168 lethal incidents involving police between 2000 and 2021, roughly 8 people killed per year by police. The

Metropolitan Atlanta Rapid Transit Authority The Metropolitan Atlanta Rapid Transit Authority (MARTA ) is the principal public transport operator in the Atlanta metropolitan area. Formed in 1971 as strictly a bus system, MARTA operates a network of Public transport bus service, bus route ...

(MARTA), which operates rail, bus, and parking lots in the city and surrounding area, has its own police force. Overall crime rates in are about 30 per every 100,000 system daily riders, which is identical to the crime figure for the Washington, D.C., area's WMATA, higher than crime figure for the Boston area's

MBTA The Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority (abbreviated MBTA and known colloquially as "the T") is the public agency responsible for operating most public transportation services in Greater Boston, Massachusetts. The MBTA transit network in ...

, and lower than the crime figure for the San Francisco area's

BART Bay Area Rapid Transit (BART) is a rapid transit system serving the San Francisco Bay Area in California. BART serves List of Bay Area Rapid Transit stations, 50 stations along six routes and of track, including eBART, a spur line running t ...

. Homicides within the MARTA system have varied. In the

fiscal year A fiscal year (also known as a financial year, or sometimes budget year) is used in government accounting, which varies between countries, and for budget purposes. It is also used for financial reporting by businesses and other organizations. La ...

ending in 2017, for example, there were four homicides investigated by MARTA police, but there were no homicides in the MARTA system in any of the previous last four fiscal years.Joshua Sharpe
After recent killings, how safe is MARTA?
''Atlanta Journal-Constitution'' (February 16, 2017). Total crimes in the MARTA system have declined from fiscal year 2013.

Crime rates and trends

From 2009 to 2016, overall crime in Atlanta declined 27 percent, "with sharp declines in burglaries (9,102 in 2009 to 4,377 in 2016), robberies (2,622 to 1,914) and aggravated assaults (2,602 to 2,179)." According to data from the City of Atlanta, overall crime has continued to decline from 2016 to 2021 at a rate of about 26 percent. The only exception is the uptick between years 2020 and 2021 (which can be explained by dramatically reduced crime occurrences due to the COVID-19 pandemic and resulting lockdowns). Nevertheless, the overall trend—including the 13.89 percent decline from 2019 to 2021—still suggests a reduction in overall crime and crime rate. Homicides and aggravated assaults, however, did rise between the years 2019 and 2022.

Homicide

Consistent with national trends, the murder rate in Atlanta peaked in 1990 and has declined since. From 2000 to 2010, murders in the city declined by nearly 50 percent. The years 2009 and 2012 had the lowest numbers of homicides in Atlanta than any year dating back to 1963, but there has been an increase in murders in the city beginning in 2013. The number of murders in Atlanta was 80 in 2009, 92 in 2010, 88 in 2011, 85 in 2012, 82 in 2013, 93 in 2014, 95 in 2015, and 111 in 2016. A significant number of murders have remained unsolved; as of February 2017, 51 of the 111 homicides from 2016 remain unsolved. An analysis of FBI Uniform Crime Report data for 2015, conducted by the economic analysis website 24/7 Wall Street, showed a murder rate in Atlanta of about 20.2 per 100,000 people, making it the 18th highest murder rate among U.S. cities.Fiza Pirani
Atlanta named one of America's top 'murder capitals'
''Atlanta Journal-Constitution'' (November 2, 2016). An October 2016 ''

FiveThirtyEight ''FiveThirtyEight'', also rendered as ''538'', was an American website that focused on opinion poll analysis, politics, economics, and sports blogging in the United States. The website, which took its name from the number of electors in the U ...

'' analysis of preliminary 2016 data, taken from official police information and local reports, found that among U.S. cities with populations of over a quarter-million people, Atlanta had the tenth-highest murder rate, at 23.9 per 100,000 residents. Fulton County District Attorney Paul Howard said that 17% of 2014 homicides in the county were gang-related.Christian Boone
Violent crime fueled by gangs on the rise in Atlanta
''Atlanta Journal-Constitution'' (July 1, 2015). In Atlanta, guns were involved in 82% of homicide cases. In July 2016, in an attempt to combat an increase in homicide, the city began Operation Whiplash, with additional police officers and other resources assigned to 33 "challenging and crime-ridden" neighborhoods in the city. Homicide investigations have increased in the city for three consecutive years (excluding 2020 due to the

COVID-19 pandemic The COVID-19 pandemic (also known as the coronavirus pandemic and COVID pandemic), caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2), began with an disease outbreak, outbreak of COVID-19 in Wuhan, China, in December ...

) from 2019 to 2022. In 2022, Atlanta police investigated 170 homicides which is the most since 1996. In 2023, the Atlanta Police Department implemented Operation Heatwave which is a strategic initiative to remove more dangerous drugs, guns, and gangs from the streets of Atlanta. In 2023, homicides dropped to 135, down 22% from 2022.

Gang crime

Street gang A gang is a social group, group or secret society, society of associates, friends, or members of a family with a defined leadership and internal organization that identifies with or claims control over Wiktionary:territory#Noun, territory in a ...

s of various levels of sophistication have had a notable presence in the city since the late 1970s. In 2015, Atlanta police were tracking about 192 gangs, more than double the number identified six years earlier. In addition to violent crime,

drug dealing The illegal drug trade, drug trafficking, or narcotrafficking is a global black market dedicated to the cultivation, manufacture, distribution and sale of prohibited drugs. Most jurisdictions prohibit trade, except under license, of many types ...

, and

carjacking Carjacking is a robbery in which a motor vehicle is taken over.Michael Cherbonneau, "Carjacking," in ''Encyclopedia of Social Problems'', Vol. 1 (SAGE, 2008: ed. Vincent N. Parrillo), pp. 110-11. In contrast to car theft, carjacking is usually i ...

, some Atlanta gangs commit

identity theft Identity theft, identity piracy or identity infringement occurs when someone uses another's personal identifying information, like their name, identifying number, or credit card number, without their permission, to commit fraud or other crimes. ...

and

credit card fraud Credit card fraud is an inclusive term for fraud committed using a payment card, such as a credit card or debit card. The purpose may be to obtain goods or services or to make payment to another account, which is controlled by a criminal. The P ...

.Crime in Atlanta: Fighting back: What gangs can offer young Asian-Americans
''The Economist'' (July 11, 2016). A 2024 survey revealed that gang membership is up 80% in Georgia since 2018, largely drive by recruitment of young Black men. Also, gang-on-gang rivalries and violence is a major problem in the Atlanta area and state. The gang problem in Atlanta is more dynamic because some gang operations in the area are sponsored by popular local artists in the hip-hop music industry. For example, Atlanta based artists

Young Thug Jeffery Lamar Williams II (born August 16, 1991), known professionally as Young Thug, is an American rapper. Known for his eccentric vocal style and fashion, he is considered an influential figure in modern hip hop music, hip hop and trap music ...

YFN Lucci Rayshawn Lamar Bennett (born February 16, 1991), known professionally as YFN Lucci, is an American rapper, singer, and songwriter. In 2014, Bennett signed a record deal with Think It's A Game Entertainment and released his debut mixtape, ''Wish M ...

, and Gunna were indicted on serious gang-related charges. In 2022, there was a 200% increase in gang-related charges in the city. In 2023, Money Inc named Atlanta the third worst gang city in the U.S. Also in 2023, the Georgia Bureau of Investigation (GBI) Gang Task Force counted about 1,000 gangs in the Atlanta area and stated they are responsible for at least 70% of all crime. The GBI Gang Task Force collaborates with Atlanta police to dismantle gang activity in the area.

Human trafficking

Atlanta is now a major transportation hub when it comes to trafficking young girls from Mexico, and is one of the top three U.S. cities with the highest levels of sex trafficking of children. In the year of 2006 the sex trade generated $290 million in Atlanta. This number derives from the study "Estimating the Size and Structure of the Underground Commercial Sex Economy in Eight Major US Cities" by the Urban Institute, with 18 interviews conducted in Atlanta, and includes "prostitutes, massage parlors, and brothels" including both "pimp controlled" and "non-pimp controlled". In the study, human trafficking is defined in the section "Background on the Prevalence of Human Trafficking in the United States" as "any sex act in exchange for which anything of value is given to or received by any person (e.g., prostitution).". Since Atlanta has “the same ready access to commercial air and ground routes that draws businesses and travelers to Atlanta also entices criminals engaged in human trafficking”. There are numerous events and conventions in Atlanta that bring many people to the city which also amplifies the issue. In 2023, Atlanta ranked second only behind

Washington, D.C. Washington, D.C., formally the District of Columbia and commonly known as Washington or D.C., is the capital city and federal district of the United States. The city is on the Potomac River, across from Virginia, and shares land borders with ...

in human trafficking activity. The majority of gangs in Atlanta are involved in human trafficking. The average age of a child being bought and sold is between 12 and 14 years old.

Notable incidents

* Atlanta murders of 1979–1981 — A series of murders that started from the summer of 1979 and ended in the spring of 1981. Twenty children were killed in this incident. * Atlanta prison riots — A series of riots in 1987. More than 100 people were taken hostage, and a portion of the Atlanta Federal Penitentiary was burned. *

Centennial Olympic Park bombing The Centennial Olympic Park bombing was a pipe bombing attack on Centennial Olympic Park in Atlanta, Georgia, United States, on July 27, 1996, during the Summer Olympics. The blast directly killed one person and injured 111 others; another pers ...

— A terrorist bombing that killed two people and injured 111 others during the

1996 Summer Olympics The 1996 Summer Olympics (officially the Games of the XXVI Olympiad, also known as Atlanta 1996 and commonly referred to as the Centennial Olympic Games) were an international multi-sport event held from July 19 to August 4, 1996, in Atlanta, ...

. * 1999 Atlanta day trading firm shootings — A shooting spree that occurred at two Atlanta-area day trading firms on July 29, 1999, in which nine people were killed and 13 other people injured. * Brian Nichols — A criminal known for his 2005 escape and killing spree in the Fulton County Courthouse and the later killing an off-duty

federal agent ''Federal Agent'' is a 1936 American crime film directed by Sam Newfield and written by Barry Barringer. The film stars William Boyd, Irene Ware, Don Alvarado, Lenita Lane, George Cooper and Charles A. Browne. The film was released on April 1 ...

. *

2021 Atlanta spa shootings On March 16, 2021, a shooting spree occurred at two spas and a massage parlor in the metropolitan area of Atlanta, Georgia, United States. Eight people were killed and a ninth was wounded. The suspect, 21-year-old Robert Aaron Long, was taken ...

— A shooting spree that occurred at three Atlanta-area spas on March 16, 2021, in which eight people were killed and one other person injured.

References

External links

Atlanta Crime MapAtlanta Police DepartmentAtlanta Crime & Sex Offenders
{{Atlanta, Georgia

Atlanta Atlanta ( ) is the List of capitals in the United States, capital and List of municipalities in Georgia (U.S. state), most populous city in the U.S. state of Georgia (U.S. state), Georgia. It is the county seat, seat of Fulton County, Georg ...