'Re-fund the Police': Homicides plummet in cities that invest in law enforcement

Five years later, new crime reports continue to reflect the effects of the "defund the police" movement. Some adopted such policies and abandoned them, while others maintain them to this day. New reports are emerging as the leftist cause shows signs of life.

Data released this week by the Major Cities Chiefs Association, which brings together 79 U.S. and Canadian police chiefs and sheriffs, reveal that homicides continued to decline in former strongholds of the movement that re-bolstered their police forces.

Portland, Baltimore, Los Angeles, Philadelphia, Denver and Minneapolis all opted to "defund" in 2020, and in the first quarter of 2025 they are reaping the rewards of having backed away. In all of them, the number of homicides decreased. This downward trend was repeated at the national level.

Reports from past years reviewed by VOZ reveal that homicides nationwide have been falling since 2022, after a peak in 2021 (more than 9,500 homicides). That increase coincides with protests following the death of George Floyd in Minneapolis and attempts by local Democratic authorities to cut law enforcement budgets.

During the period of police defunding, homicides rose 44% in 70 major cities across the country. This is revealed by fresh data from the Law Enforcement Legal Defense Fund (LELDF), an organization dedicated to the legal defense of police officers. Period between 2020 and 2022 they call "De-Policing."

LELDF examined 15 cities, including Los Angeles, New York, Chicago, Dallas, Fort Worth and more. Some of the most populous, the most violent. In those, the figures are more pronounced: homicides increased by 54% during the defunding period and decreased by 40% during the re-funding period.

This trend in homicides is linked to corresponding booms and busts in arrests during the same periods: arrests decreased by 40% during the defunding period and increased by 37% in the re-funding period.

The strength with which funding resumed is directly linked to improvements in safety rates, LELDF data reveal. As a case in point, it cites New York, Chicago, New Orleans and Washington, D.C. All increased arrests by more than 37%, with New Orleans having the sharpest increase: 117%.

Cities such as Fort Worth, Houston, Los Angeles and Phoenix saw more modest improvements. Why? "Re-policing has occurred more slowly." Even more modest were Portland, Minneapolis and Austin, repentant bastions of the defund movement recording the most severe increases in homicides: +310% in Portland, +79% in Minneapolis, +49% in Austin.

All three, however, saw improvements after reversing their anti-police policies. In all cases, the trend is the same: investing in police increases arrests and reduces homicides. In conclusion: "Increased police activity—measured through arrests and stops—contributes to reduced violence."