FORT LAUDERDALE, Fla. — Some of Florida’s biggest municipalities went against the national trend in 2021 by reducing their murder numbers, or keeping them practically the same, from 2020, according to statistics from medical examiners.
COVID-19 caused major changes in routine activities such as going to work, going to the movies, going out to eat, or attending late-night parties, and that may have reduced opportunities for homicides and violent crime.
“This could explain, in part, a decrease in crime in some South Florida regions,” Dr. Vaughn Crichlow, associate dean in the College of Social Work and Criminal Justice at Florida Atlantic University, said in an email.
