Report claims US inches towards lowest number of homicides in 2026. Is history repeating itself?

Report claims US inches towards lowest number of homicides in 2026. Is history repeating itself? A new Council on Criminal Justice report finds homicide rates continued to fall during the first half of 2026, putting the U.S. on pace for one of its lowest murder rates in modern history. While both Republicans and Democrats point to different reasons for the decline, researchers say the improvement is likely driven by multiple long-term factors rather than any single policy.