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Did Milwaukee juvenile homicides increase 57% under David Crowley?

βœ‡Wisconsin Watch
By: Tom Kertscher ／ Wisconsin Watch
Reading Time: < 1 minute

Wisconsin Watch partners withΒ GigafactΒ to produce Fact Briefs β€” bite-sized fact checks of trending claims. Read our methodology to learn how we check claims.

No.

Since David Crowley became Milwaukee County executive, the number of juvenile homicide victims in the county has ranged between 19 and 27 annually, with no clear trend upward or downward.

Crowley, who was sworn in in May 2020, is the Democratic nominee for Wisconsin governor in the Nov. 3 election.

Here are the number of Milwaukee County homicide victims ages 6-17:

2025: 19Β 

2024: 27

2023: 22

2022: 25

2021: 21

2020: 19

An Americans for Prosperity ad claimed that β€œunder Crowley, Milwaukee juvenile homicides surged 57%.”

The figure refers to juvenile homicide suspects, not homicide deaths, in the city of Milwaukee and not countywide.

In January, Milwaukee police said 22 juvenile homicide suspects in the city in 2025 were a 57% increase from 2024.

Most law enforcement in the county is done by city and village police departments. They are not under the control of the county executive.

This Fact Brief is responsive to conversations such as this one.

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Did Milwaukee juvenile homicides increase 57% under David Crowley? is a post from Wisconsin Watch, a non-profit investigative news site covering Wisconsin since 2009. Please consider making a contribution to support our journalism.

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