WASHINGTON D.C., DC — The District of Columbia is on the verge of hitting a milestone - but one that no one wants to see. 2023 is on track to be the deadliest year DC has seen in almost two decades.
In 2003, DC saw 248 homicides. Now in 2023, 245 people have been killed in DC as of Friday night, with about a month and a half left in the year.
WUSA9 spoke to several DC residents, including Melanie Adrian, who lives in the city and says her level of feeling safe and secure is in accordance with where she is and what time of day it is.
"There are days that don’t feel safe and it also depends on the area, especially during the night," she explained, "I do feel much safer when walking with friends or with a group of people, but if it’s past 11 or 11:30, then I prefer not walking by myself down the street."
Likewise, Victoria McCoy, is a Virginia native and just moved to the U-Street corridor a few months ago. She admits that she has experienced some moments of uneasiness.
"I would say overall there have been times where I’ve been approached and it’s made me uncomfortable," she said.
In 2023 alone, WUSA9 has documented a number of deadly incidents including 13-year old Vernard Toney Junior, who was shot and killed during a carjacking last month and 38 year old Carlos Javier Blanco Fernandez, who was shot and killed on Wednesday night.
But despite the homicide numbers, McCoy says she does feel safe.
"I would say I don’t walk around needing to clutch my bag or my pearls," she said.
Meanwhile Todd Clark has lived in Shaw for decades and says he's seen the city go through waves of high violent crime, especially in the early 1990s. So he is a big proponent of staying vigilant.
"I practice what I call – TEA – total environmental awareness. So you’re spatially aware, peripherally aware, spiritually aware," he explained, "you’re just aware of your surroundings, where you are, what time it is and staying away from areas that don’t look safe and people who don’t feel safe."
Those sentiments were shared especially by the women we spoke to.
"I know where I should go by myself or I’m always trying to use the buddy system. I feel fairly safe," said McCoy.
Last month, DC Mayor Muriel Bowser introduced new legislation called ACT Now - or Address Crime Trends Now Act - to try to fight crime.