LANSING, Mich. — Violent crime across Michigan has fallen to the lowest point in seven years, Gov. Gretchen Whitmer announced Monday in Lansing, tying the drop to years of state spending on police and violence prevention.
The governor’s office said homicides have declined by more than 40% since 2021, while robberies are now about half of what they were when she took office. State figures show a gun is involved in close to a third of the violent crimes reported in Michigan.
Whitmer pointed to nearly $2 billion the state has put toward public safety since 2018. Over the past two fiscal years, $100 million of it went out as Public Safety Revenue Sharing money to local cities, villages and townships, along with $25.2 million in grants for groups that step in to stop violence, $2.5 million for a task force on preventing gun deaths, and a 20% pay bump for state police troopers and sergeants.
Michigan State Police Director Col. James F. Grady II credited troopers and local partners for the results. Under Operation Safe Neighborhoods, officers have seized more than 1,000 illegal guns and made more than 11,000 visits to check on people who have felony records, the state said.
Lawmakers who back the spending, including state Sen. Kevin Hertel of St. Clair Shores, said the numbers show the approach is working. Whitmer has also put her signature on gun measures covering universal background checks, safe storage, extreme risk protection orders, and a firearm ban for people convicted of domestic abuse.
Section: More Lansing MI crime news
Filed under: Lansing MI Public Safety News
