When a news headline tells you Baton Rouge had a homicide rate in 2017 that was higher than Chicago’s, it has to peak your interest. It certainly caught my attention.

Was it really that bad? The Advocate of Baton Rouge, which published the story, called the 106 killings “the most murderous year in known history for East Baton Rouge Parish.” Sounds awfully bad to me.

The newspaper said authorities have three concerns about the high homicide rate. 1. Domestic violence occurred at unprecedented levels. 2. Progress in certain crime-plagued areas of the parish has been reversed. 3. Law enforcement agencies already short on manpower have been stretched to the limit.

The Advocate said officials called the parish’s 14 domestic violence homicide cases “remarkably high, even in a state that consistently has one of the highest proportions of such deaths…”

The 38 homicides per 100,000 residents in Baton Rouge were higher than the 24 per 100,000 homicides in Chicago. The Baton Rouge homicides were an increase of 70 percent from 2016 when 62 were counted.

The Advocate said the FBI defines homicides as intentional, not justified nor accidental, killings.

The 87 homicides within the city limits of Baton Rouge accounted for 82 percent of the parish total. There were 19 homicides outside the city limits, with 14 handled by the East Baton Rouge Parish Sheriff’s Office, 4 by the Zachary Police Department and 1 by the Baker Police Department.

Richard Rosenfeld, a criminology professor at the University of Missouri-St. Louis, said the Baton Rouge rate stands out even more considering the majority of major cities, including Chicago, saw a decline in their homicide rates in 2017.

“I have not seen a spike of this magnitude in other places,” Rosenfeld said, but adds the situation in Baton Rouge seems to be improving.

The newspaper said pinpointing exactly what led to the yearlong high homicide count and a recent improvement in the crime rate remains up in the air for both local leaders and crime experts.

East Baton Rouge Parish District Attorney Hillar Moore III and former interim Baton Rouge Police Chief Jonny Dunnam blame some of the homicides on what is called the social disorganization theory. Chaos was caused, they said, after a black citizen was killed by a white police officer in 2016, three law enforcement officers were subsequently killed and the destructive August flooding disrupted people’s lives.

Dunnam also believes many of the homicides were drug-related, a possible effect of the national opioid epidemic, which he said hasn’t spared Baton Rouge.

Rosenfeld said police in some areas withdrew from their communities and citizens quit cooperating after the police shooting of Michael Brown in Ferguson, Mo. However, he said he doesn’t believe that is the case in Baton Rouge. Dunnam said community involvement has improved.

“I think the people honestly stepped up,” Dunnam said in early December. “They started coming forward with information that helped us solve a lot of these homicides and get these individuals that were committing these crimes off the streets.”

Moore said he thinks the end of a program called BRAVE that was aimed at changing the path of youth in groups or gangs could have contributed some to the rise in homicides. He said he and community leaders have formed a nonprofit group that they hope can continue some of the program’s work.

Calcasieu Parish has started a similar program called the Positive Change Initiative that will educate and counsel middle-school-age students on the dangers of delinquent behavior. The District Attorney’s Office, Calcasieu Parish Police Jury, School Board and Sheriff’s Office and the city of Lake Charles are all contributing.

With the help of qualified workers and volunteers, young people will be counseled on the benefits of staying in school and working toward getting a good job.

Zachary Police Chief David McDavid said he hopes regional leaders can band together to determine why the East Baton Rouge homicide rate is so high and what can be done about it.

“I just feel like we need to really wake up and see what the root cause of all this is, talk about it, then (do something),” he said. “I think we can stop this (together).”

The people of East Baton Rouge Parish have indicated they are ready for a culture change because they believe life has to be better. As one citizen said, “A lot of people have been through different experiences, and they can help one another.”

Law enforcement agencies in this part of the state have worked well together. And we owe the men and women in this area who work to maintain law and order a special thanks for giving us what the people of Baton Rouge want — a safer and better life.

CRIME RATES — Baton Rouge, La, has a serious homicide rate it has to deal with, but officials are confident in a turnaround.

MGNonline