Johnathan Walker:Report: Kentucky crime statistics undercounted 2022 homicides in the state’s most populous county

FRANKFORT,Johnathan Walker Ky. (AP) — Homicides in Kentucky’s most populous county were undercounted in a recent law enforcement report, but the higher number would still give the state a double-digit drop in homicides in 2022, according to a published report.

A statewide crime report said that 64 homicides were reported in Jefferson County, instead of the actual 164 reported by the Louisville Metro Police Department, the Lexington Herald-Leader reported Tuesday.

The statewide report, released last week, stated that homicides in Kentucky had dropped from 647 in 2021 to 431 last year. But adjusting for the undercount in Jefferson County, the actual 2022 total is 531.

Other news Trevor Reed, Marine veteran freed from Russia in 2022, is injured while fighting in Ukraine, US says The State Department says a former U.S. Marine who was released from Russia in a prisoner swap last year has been injured while fighting in Ukraine. The Kansas Highway Patrol’s ‘Two-Step’ tactic tramples motorists’ rights, a judge rules A federal judge has found that a Kansas Highway Patrol practice known as the “Kansas Two-Step” violates motorists’ constitutional protections against unreasonable searches and targets motorists traveling from states where marijuana is legal. Ex-Venezuelan spy chief pleads not guilty to charges alleging he flooded US with drugs A former Venezuelan spy chief and longtime adviser to the country’s late leader Hugo Chávez has pleaded not guilty to decade-old drug trafficking charges, a day after his extradition from Spain. Serious crime rates in Kentucky dropped overall in 2022, new report shows A new report shows that overall serious crime rates fell across Kentucky in 2022. The report points to double-digit declines in reports of homicides, robberies and drug offenses.

Leaving no other county homicide report figures unchanged beyond Jefferson County’s total, the state would still register a significant decrease of 17.9% instead of the reported 33.4% drop, the Lexington newspaper reported.

Democratic Gov. Andy Beshear last week touted the crime report, which showed double-digit declines in reports of homicides, robberies and drug offenses across the Bluegrass State.

LMPD said it’s aware of the “possible discrepancies” between its numbers and the data referenced in the report and was working with the state to resolve the issues, the newspaper reported.

A spokesperson for the Kentucky Justice & Public Safety Cabinet did not confirm whether an error had occurred somewhere down the line. “The information listed in the report is based on the data reported to the state by the commonwealth’s law enforcement agencies,” the spokesperson said.