Houston police official on short-lived decrease in homicides: 'This is going to be an ongoing battle for us'

The City of Houston's homicide rate rose again some days after Houston Mayor Sylvester Turner and the Houston Police Department (HPD) said that it declined for the first time in more than a year, Houston ABC affiliate KTRK reported.

Officials said last Tuesday (May 31) that Houston tentatively tallied 187 homicides through the first five months of this year, five less than the figure logged at this same time last year. 

But as of Friday (June 3), the 2022 figure increased to 195.

According to the station, Turner – while touting the One Safe Houston anti-crime initiative for the temporary decline – acknowledged an increase wouldn't be an anomaly.

"I certainly understand that on any given day, or any given week, numbers can tick up," the mayor said, KTRK reported.

Turner and the city launched One Safe Houston earlier this year to address rising violent crime.

In response to the slight bump in the homicide rate, HPD Executive Chief Assistant Larry Satterwhite said that the department has its work cut out.

"This is going to be an ongoing battle for us," Satterwhite said, according to the station.

Even Turner said that it isn't "a mission accomplished," Houston Daily reported.

HPD Officer Union President Doug Griffith said that despite the 4% overall decrease in the city's violent crimes this year, it remains a huge problem for the community.

"Society as a whole, we see violence escalating all across this nation," Griffith said, KTRK reported. "We've got to find a way to put a stop to that."

At the time the city announced the drop in the homicide rate, police showed declines in all four major violent crime categories.