In Milwaukee, "The (homicide) rate has nearly doubled in the past two years."
That was back in March. On Friday, 21 people were injured in three shootings in the city’s downtown entertainment district. Milwaukee has seen record numbers of homicides in each of the past two years — double the rate from as recently as 2019 — and is on pace to break the record again this year. In January, six people were killed across the street from a home where Johnson grew up. "Milwaukee is in the midst of unsustainable and unacceptable violence," Johnson says. Milwaukee has other public safety problems. Vehicle thefts have doubled over the past couple of years to more than 11,000 annually, many ripped off by minors known as "Kia Boys" in reference to one of the preferred brands for break-ins. Milwaukee is a mostly flat city criss-crossed by long, broad, straight streets. If you’re driving 40 mph in a 30 mph zone, you will get passed. Last year, 65 people were killed in the city due to reckless driving. "It’s become a social contagion," says Jordan Morales, a resident of the Sherman Park neighborhood. "It’s not just teenaged kids in stolen cars."