Sunday and Monday were the deadliest days of the week in Los Angeles in 2014. April saw the most killings; January and February the least. More people were killed with a firearm than any other weapon. Those statistics and others compiled by the LAPD offer a detailed look at the 260 homicides that occurred in Los Angeles last year, reports the city’s Times. Collectively, the data offers a look at “the nature of homicide in Los Angeles,” said Police Chief Charlie Beck.
Violence tied to gangs remained the leading motive for homicides in L.A., at 160 killings, or about 62 percent of the total. Street killings are linked to gang violence, Beck said, which helps explain why about 53 percent of the city’s homicides occurred on a street or sidewalk. Nearly 86 percent of the people killed in Los Angeles last year were male. About one-third of victims were 26 to 35, and about a quarter were 18 to 25. Out of 260 victims, 119 were Latino and 112 were black. Four murder-suicides occurred, each related to domestic violence.