Wednesday, December 27, 2017
Associated Press
COLUMBUS
Ohio’s capital city set a grim record Tuesday with its 140th homicide this year, passing the previous high of 139 logged in 1991.
Columbus’ 2017 tally tied and then passed that mark with the deaths of a 57-year-old woman found with signs of trauma in a home on Monday and a 37-year-old man shot through a door to his apartment in a case reported early Tuesday.
Police said they were awaiting an autopsy to determine whether the death of a woman found with serious head injuries in the rear of a property also is ruled a homicide.
The city’s homicide count is up from 106 last year and 96 the year before.
This year’s list includes one victim who died from injuries from a 2014 shooting.
Sgt. Dave Sicilian, of the police division’s homicide unit, said the tallying isn’t as important as the lives lost, the families affected and the actions that can be taken to prevent further deaths.
Columbus’ overall homicide rate is actually down from 1991 because of the city’s population growth. Columbus is now the country’s 14th largest city, with about 860,000 residents, according to U.S. Census Bureau figures from last year.