MILWAUKEE – More people were killed in Milwaukee in 2021 than any previous year on record. Less than half of those homicides resulted in an arrest.
As of Tuesday, December 21, 2021, the Milwaukee Police Department’s official crime tracker said 191 homicides had been committed in 2021. That’s more than the previous record of 188, which was set in 2020.
Assistant Chief of the Milwaukee Police Department, Paul Formolo, tells WTMJ that the number is actually higher than that.
“The number is now 192, unfortunately,” Assistant Chief Formolo said on Tuesday afternoon.
Just 47% of those homicides have resulted in an arrest, according to the Milwaukee Police Department.
“Historically, we’re able to sustain anywhere between 70 to 80 percent clearance rate for homicides,” Assistant Chief Formolo said.
“Obviously, this 47 percent clearance rate we have is unacceptable.”
“We want to prevent [homicides] from happening in the first place, but when they do occur, we take significant pride in trying to give those families of homicides victims justice and bring those perpetrators to be held accountable.”
He says the key to reducing the record number of homicides and helping to arrest more of those perpetrators is communication and cooperation between witnesses and people who have information about the crimes.
“It’s not like what you see on TV, where you’re gonna find this a-ha piece of evidence that’s going to solve the murder for you. That happens a couple times a year,” Assistant Chief Formolo said.
“Most of the homicides that we solve is because of information that we receive from within the community. I.E., witnesses.”
Formolo says the Milwaukee Police Department is partnering with local government officers, such as the Office of Violence Prevention, and non-government organizations, such as VR Fast or Violence Reduction Public Health and Safety Team.
“And that’s where we bring everybody together under one umbrella and we’re talking about these issues. These underlying reasons for why violence is taking place in our city. We’re looking for opportunities for intervention.”
He says the department also works with the Homicide Review Commission, working to do case studies on certain homicides that are committed in Milwaukee, “to determine if there are systemic issues that are contributing to the problem that’s taking place.”
Assistant Chief Formolo says the department is determined to increase the number of homicides which result in an arrest.
“When a family has a person that becomes a victim of a homicide, we have to show them that we care and that that death isn’t just another statistic,” Formolo said.
“We understand as a police department that the last two years have not been easy. They’ve been very tough on people,” he said.
“Considering the pandemic, the violent crime rate, the reckless driving issues and just trying to re-establish our legitimacy within the community. And we’re here to serve you. If you need us, call us. We are desperately asking for you to continue to cooperate with us.”
You can listen to the entire interview between WTMJ’s Alex Crowe and Assistant Chief Paul Formolo of the Milwaukee Police Department in the player at the top of this page.
