Springfield homicide total more than doubles from ‘16 to ‘17

SPRINGFIELD, Mo. (AP) - Police say the number of homicides more than doubled in Springfield from 2016 to 2017.

The Springfield News-Leader reports that Springfield recorded eight homicides in 2016 and 17 in 2017.

Springfield police Lt. Culley Wilson says only one death appears to be random. In that case, a man is accused of climbing outside a car window and firing a handgun into the night sky. One bullet struck and killed a man in a McDonald’s parking lot.

In all the other cases, the victim and the accused knew one another.

While the 17 homicides in 2017 were more than double 2016’s total, it’s not a particularly high number for Springfield. In 2012, there were 19 homicides; in 2013, 10 homicides; in 2014, 17 homicides; in 2015, 13 homicides.

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Information from: Springfield News-Leader, http://www.news-leader.com