Erie sees spike in homicides, increase in rapes as crimes rise, fall in the city in 2023

Erie bucked a national trend in 2023 when the city's homicide rate increased over the previous year.

But, more alarming, the city might have set a record for the number of people killed at the hands of another in a given year.

The 14 homicides investigated by the Erie Bureau of Police more than doubled the six homicides investigated in 2022 and surpassed the most recent high number, 12, that was set in 2010, according to Erie police and Erie County Coroner's Office records.

Unknown from available data is whether Erie ever experienced a time when there were 14 or more homicides in a calendar year.

Statistics from the Coroner's Office list 14 homicides in the city in 2018, but that number included two people who were injured by another person in Chautauqua County, New York, but died at Erie hospitals that year, and a man who died in 2018 of injuries he suffered when he was shot in 1997. There were a record-21 homicides in all of Erie County in 2018, according to Coroner's Office records.

The Coroner's Office actually lists 16 homicides in the city in 2023, but that number includes two people who died of complications from injuries suffered when they were assaulted as younger children. One of those victims was 4 when he died in February, and the other was 31 when he died in September, according to Coroner Lyell Cook.

Homicide numbers for all of Erie County are available through the Coroner's Office dating back to 1960. But a breakdown separating homicides in Erie from homicides in other parts of the county was unavailable before 2000, and in only four years between 1960 and 2000 — 1971, 1975, 1976 and 1980 — did the county's homicide numbers match or exceed 14, according to the data.

The jump in homicides is a big concern for the Erie Bureau of Police, Chief Dan Spizarny said. But he noted that, in 2023 as well as 2022, detectives cleared all of those cases through arrest or other means.

"We're hoping it was just an odd year and the numbers will go down significantly," the chief said of the city's homicides.

Spizarny also pointed out that, despite increases in homicides and a few other crimes including reported rapes, a number of other serious crimes in the city decreased last year. Those included reported shootings, people shot, and stolen and recovered firearms, crimes that had spiked in recent years as the city dealt with a surge in gun violence.

"Overall I'd say it was a very good year," Spizarny said. "I think we're showing some downward trends on some of our most watched offenses."

Homicide spike

Data released by the FBI in December showed that, as a whole, murder rates in cities across the country fell during the first three quarters of 2023 compared to the same time period in 2022. A nearly 25% drop in murder and nonnegligent manslaughter was seen in Pennsylvania last year based on data law enforcement agencies provide to the Pennsylvania Uniform Crime Reporting system.

Erie's homicides began last year on Jan. 15, when police said 21-year-old Noah King was fatally shot when he met up with accused shooter Michael Ochrang to fight at Rodger Young Park on the city's east side.

Erie matched 2022's murder rate on May 28, when Erie police said Rashaan Husband was fatally shot in a reported shootout at another city park. Last year's mark was exceeded days later, when 26-year-old Quran Sims was fatally shot inside the bedroom of his French Street home on June 3.

Erie's last homicide of the year occurred on Dec. 12, when 18-year-old Hayden Lucas was fatally shot inside his Lighthouse Street home as he and some friends were reportedly wrestling and taking a video in which guns were displayed.

Spizarny noted that a number of Erie's homicides last year were domestic-related.

Four victims died in what authorities ruled as murder-suicides. A 37-year-old woman was believed to have been fatally shot by a 45-year-old man who then killed himself inside their home in the 900 block of East 28th Street on Jan. 23. At a house five blocks to the east on East 28th Street, police said a 79-year-old man was believed to have fatally shot his 62-year-old wife before killing himself on July 18. One month later, authorities said a 23-year-old woman and her 16-year-old brother were fatally shot by the woman's boyfriend, who then fatally shot himself.

Spizarny said police believe two other homicides in the city in 2023 were domestic related: the fatal shooting on June 3 of Sims, whom police said reportedly had some sort of relationship or contact with the wife of his accused shooter, Robert Esquilin-Ortiz; and the fatal stabbing on Sept. 19 of 48-year-old Autumn Bassham, allegedly by her onetime boyfriend, Gordon Kirkland.

Erie police worked to better address domestic violence, mental health and other issues in 2023 by launching in May its resurrected Crisis Unit. Officers on the unit work all shifts and are specially trained to respond to deescalate situations and provide aid to those in need.

Lucas was one of two homicide victims fatally shot when someone was reportedly mishandling a gun.

William Rickert, 24, was fatally shot on May 13 inside an East 26th residence while he and others were reportedly recording music in a makeshift studio. Investigators said the accused shooter, Graham Kelly, stated that he picked up a gun and was stretching when the weapon fired, hitting Rickert.

Shootings, weapons cases drop

While fatal shootings jumped in Erie in 2023, with 13 of the city's 14 homicide victims killed by gunfire, Erie police data showed a drop in other serious gun-related incidents that had spiked in recent years.

There were 49 people shot in Erie last year, down from 67 in 2022 and the lowest figure since 42 people were shot in 2019. Reports of shots fired in the city, which had climbed from 134 in 2019 to 245 in 2020 and 311 in 2021, continued a two-year decline from 239 in 2022 to 194 last year, according to city police data.

Reports of firearms stolen in the city dropped by more than half, from 148 in 2022 to 73 last year, while the number of guns police recovered on the streets decreased from 308 in 2022 to 254 in 2023, police reported.

Erie police over the summer began employing the controversial ShotSpotter gunshot detection system to help identify areas of the city where guns were being fired. The system uses sensors to detect and locate gunshots using triangulation, and once a sound is determined to be gunfire alerts are sent to police.

Spizarny said with the ShotSpotter system, police are alerted to shootings quicker than they are when citizens call in shots-fired reports, and officers can then respond more quickly to incidents.

Offenses up, down

Among the reported crimes that increased besides homicides in 2023, based on Erie police data, included robberies, up 2%; assaults, up nearly 14%; sex offenses, up 4%; auto theft, up 21%; and rapes, up 30%.

Spizarny said the rise in auto thefts could be attributed to the "Kia Challenge," a theft spree circulating on social media that shows how to start certain models of Kia and Hyundai vehicles that aren't equipped with electronic immobilizers. The online challenge has plagued cities across the country.

Erie police dealt with a rash of Kia and Hyundai thefts in the city in late summer and charged three people in that crime spree. Another rash of thefts and attempted thefts occurred over the Christmas holiday and remain under investigation, Spizarny said.

The increase in reported rapes, from 30 in 2022 to 39 last year, is a crime that police have witnessed growing through their review of quarterly reports, Spizarny said.

"They're going up and we don't know why they've gone up, and we're not meeting or exceeding the clearance rate," he said. "It's one crime area where we aren't where we want to be."

Spizarny said police will be working with the Erie County District Attorney's Office, which reviews all sex cases and makes decisions concerning charges, to see what issues they can address. He noted that in the majority of the cases, the suspect is known to the victim.

District Attorney Elizabeth Hirz said her office reviews every report and works closely with Erie police on their investigations into rape cases from beginning to end.

"We will continue to work very closely with Erie police to address these incidents and, as we have always done in the past, work very closely with the Crime Victim Center to make sure these victims have the support and resources they need," Hirz said.

Erie police saw decreases in 10 of the 19 "most watched" crimes last year, Spizarny said.

Besides incidents involving shots-fired, people shot and guns stolen and recovered, incidents that dropped included arsons, down 16%; aggravated assaults, down 5%; burglaries, down nearly 25%; and fraud cases, down 24%, according to city police figures.

Spizarny said he expects police to get more good news when they calculate the clearance rates of major offenses from 2023. Cases are cleared through arrest or other means, and Spizarny said it appears at least eight of the major crimes in the city from last year will meet or exceed the national average for clearance rates in those incidents.

He noted that Erie's 100% percent clearance rate for homicides last year far exceeded the the roughly 50% clearance rate for those crimes across the country.

"I think with the clearance numbers you will see people being held accountable for their actions," Spizarny said. "I think we are definitely on the right track."

Contact Tim Hahn at thahn@timesnews.com. Follow him on X @ETNhahn.

This article originally appeared on Erie Times-News: Erie PA sees spike in homicides as crimes rise and fall in 2023