Des Moines records 17 homicides in 2024, 2 remain unsolved
As we usher in a new year, police in Des Moines are still investigating a few murders from the last year.
There were 17 homicides in Des Moines in 2024. Three of them were officer-involved shootings, which have all been ruled legally justified by the Iowa Attorney General.
There is one case from November in which the medical examiner has not determined a cause of death, but it is being investigated as a homicide.
Des Moines Police Department Sgt. Paul Parizek told us the number of homicides last year is about average for Des Moines.
"We've had years where we've been low in the single digits and we've had years where we've been well over 20," he said. "So, 17, we'll take it. It's about average. We obviously wish that we could have a lot fewer."
There are two cases from last year that are still unsolved.
"What we're here for is to find justice for the families and the friends of the survivors and then do what we can to make sure that we get the people who are violent and dangerous off the streets," Parizek said.
DMPD's clearance rate for homicide is often above 90 percent.
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