54% of Indianapolis homicide cases were solved in 2021

Updated Jan. 12, 2022

A little more than half of Indianapolis homicide cases were solved in 2021.

The Indianapolis Metropolitan Police Department released its 2021 homicide report Monday, which found 54.24% of homicide cases were "cleared" or resulted in an arrest. No criminal charges or convictions are needed for a case to be considered cleared. The other 46.76% of cases are considered to be unsolved. 

The 54.24% of cases includes some cases that took place in past years, but were not solved until 2021. 

Last year was another record-breaking year for homicides in Indianapolis, with 271 killings, up 26 from the year before. This number includes non-criminal homicides, such as self-defense killings and officer-involved shootings.

A record $295 million was recently allocated for IMPD in the 2022 city budget. That funding includes money for new technology to better track crime and more officers for community patrols.

Correction: A previous version of this story incorrectly defined the 2021 clearance rate. The 54.24% clearance rate includes cases that took place in other years and were solved in 2021, not just cases that took place in 2021. 

Contact WFYI criminal justice reporter Katrina Pross at kpross@wfyi.org. Follow on Twitter: @katrina_pross.

Pross is a Corps Member of Report for America, an initiative of The GroundTruth Project.