Baton Rouge’s crime insights from the DA and police chief end of 2024

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While the parish’s murder rate has declined since its record-setting 151 homicides in 2021, the numbers have risen over the past two years. There were 112 murders in 2022 and 102 in 2023, marking a 10% increase in 2024.

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As a result of this lack of hierarchy, Morse identified retaliatory shootings and killings between various groups as one of the most common trends he observed this year.

“I shot at y’all this day, so now y’all are shooting back at me and my friends, and now we’re shooting back at your friends the next day,” Morse said.

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Although Moore avoids using the term “gang” to describe most street-level violence, he noted that “street groups” lack the organization and discipline of traditional gangs.

“Generally, when I use the term ‘street group,’ people may say, ‘Well, you just don’t want to say gang.’ But why can’t you just say gang?” Moore asked. “I wish I could tell you that we have gangs because gangs are highly organized and structured, and they really do not want to get caught. They want to take care of their business, and generally, it’s drug dealing or whatever they’re in the business of, but generally, it’s not homicide.”

“And if you do things that hurt the life of the gang, they will punish you because they have internal rules and punishment mechanisms. Street groups are not highly organized at all. They’re sloppy, and it makes them more dangerous because they don’t have that mentality of work,” Moore added.

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Both Morse and Moore pointed to the increasing use of illegally modified firearms, such as 3D-printed ghost guns and automatic weapons, as a growing concern for Baton Rouge crime. With this new technology, criminals can drastically increase their firepower resulting in more deadly incidents.

“We’re recovering a lot more shell casings on the scenes of these shootings,” Morse said, emphasizing the lethality of these weapons.

Moore agreed. “We’re seeing more weapons, including fully automatic ones, in the hands of juveniles who are not afraid to use them,” he said.

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