# violence
The New York Police Department recorded 479 killings amid a spike in gun violence across the city.
The Big Apple has not recorded more than 500 homicides since 2011, when 515 were recorded, according to the data.
In 2012, homicides dropped to 419. In the following years, the city plummeted to 300 homicides each year, with the exception of 2017, when 292 homicides were recorded.
This year's total already surpasses 2020's total of 462 - a year that saw a spike in deadly incidents in major cities across the country as the COVID-19 pandemic disrupted nearly every aspect of life. The trend continued into 2021, with homicides in New York City spiking at the end of the year.
Over the past month, reported homicides have nearly doubled during the same four-week period - 41 between Nov. 28 and Dec. 26 this year, compared with 24 during the same period last year, according to NYPD data.