A new study out of the Leon County Council on the Status of Men and Boys confirms what many observers already know: perpetrators and victims are often black and live in high-poverty neighborhoods. The findings are similar to what the Leon County Sheriff's office found with its groundbreaking 2021 report “Anatomy of a Homicide.” That research recently received an international honor.
So, how bad is Tallahassee’s gun violence? According to the report done by Florida State University researchers on behalf of the council—there have been 733 homicides and shootings during the past four years. Of those, the shooters are overwhelmingly young black men. The victims are also majority black. The neighborhood with the highest rate of Gun violence is Frenchtown, while Bond, Providence, and the Southside also saw higher rates of shootings than other neighborhoods.
The Tallahassee-Leon County Council on the status of Men and Boys commissioned the research. It was done in partnership with Florida State University's Center for Criminology and Public Policy Research within the College of Criminology and Criminal Justice.
The report examined shootings and homicides between June 4, 2019 – June 4, 2023. The study tracked 70 homicide incidents, 101 attempted homicides, 356 aggravated assaults with a firearm, and "206 missiles fired into dwellings or conveyances." According to that research, "Suspect(s) were identified in less than half of all incidents, and approximately one-third of cases were officially cleared. One-third of incidents involved arguments, most commonly regarding petty disputes or perceptions of disrespect."
The research was created in response to the Leon County Sheriff's Office’s “Anatomy of a Homicide Report”—a 2021 study that galvanized the conversations around the county’s growing gun violence problem. That work was led by Leon Sheriff Walt McNeil, who has prioritized addressing gun violence.
"Part of what I am seeking to do is increase the level of awareness and engagement. And 'Anatomy of a Homicide' has changed that," McNeil said in a 2022 interview with WFSU.
Recently, the Sheriff's Office received an international award, called the IACP/Simsi Leadership in Law Enforcement Research Award. The International Association of Chiefs of Police backs it.
