INDIANAPOLIS -- Indianapolis has seen a spike in crime during July, with dozens of assaults reported every day and at least 18 people killed.
On Wednesday, city leaders gathered to address the recent wave of violence. They expressed concern – but also optimism about their ability to right the ship.
"Those who promote lawlessness and chaos in the city of Indianapolis, you will not divide us," said Mayor Joe Hogsett.
So far this year, at least 78 people have been the victim of a criminal homicide. That's even more than this time last year – which ended as the city's deadliest on record.
See where this year's homicides have occurred on our interactive map - https://t.co/cLxip48vEN pic.twitter.com/WbeqDjjrD4
— Jordan Fischer (@Jordan_RTV6) July 27, 2016
"We show up and we get to July and we're averaging one per day or one every other day early on," said IMPD Chief Troy Riggs.
At the same meeting, Riggs offered another eyebrow-raising statistic about this year's homicides.
"We believe that two individuals – two out of 900,000 residents of this community – are responsible for committing more than 10 percent of the homicides," Riggs said. "We're on their trail."
Police say those two people are in custody. One is Johnathan Cruz, the man accused of killing three people in May in a "purge" spree. The other has yet to be charged.
.@IMPD_News data shows there hasn't been a day in July with fewer than 20 assaults reported -- sometimes up to 50. pic.twitter.com/eyAcB7TvPd
— Jordan Fischer (@Jordan_RTV6) July 26, 2016
There's also the issue of violence against officers. Close to 700 IMPD officers are assaulted each year. This year, assaults involving guns are on the rise. And, Riggs said, this might not be the worst things get.
DATA| Police shootings & attacks on cops nationwide
"It is entirely possible that things will continue to get worse before we turn the corner and see real progress made," Riggs said.
READ MORE | These three maps show Indianapolis' homicide problem | In past year, 2 IMPD officers have been shot, 38 have fired their guns
