Murder Rates on the Rise in Philadelphia

PHILADELPHIA (AP) Oct. 18, 2005 -- Homicide rates are up in Philadelphia.

The Philadelphia Inquirer says the city is on a pace to reach nearly 380 killings by the end of the year. That would be the most since 1997. At the current rate of more than one homicide a day, Philadelphia would top the 326 killings of 2004 and far exceed the 17-year-low of 288 reached in 2002.

The trend reverses a decline from 1990 when 500 homicides were counted. Levels were above 400 per year through most of the early and mid-1990s.

New York and Los Angeles have both reported declines in homicides so far this year compared with last year, while Chicago has seen its homicide rate rise.

Police Commissioner Sylvester Johnson blames the increase in Philadelphia on the availability of guns, which are involved in about 80 percent of homicides in the city.

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