After a Flock camera identified homicide suspect Levy Nelson’s vehicle in April, Henrico County Police were able to pursue and apprehend Nelson near Audubon Drive and West Wood Harbor Court. (Photo courtesy Henrico County Police Division)
It’s a bit of good news for a country that some feel is careening toward a political and socioeconomic breakdown: Six years after the COVID-19 pandemic, homicides and violent crime are falling in metro Richmond and across the country.
Henrico County recorded only three homicides in 2025, an 86% drop from 2024, while Richmond held steady at 54. Chesterfield, the outlier, saw a 75% spike in homicides, jumping from 12 in 2024 to 21 in 2025. All three jurisdictions, however, saw overall drops in violent crime.
Nationally, violence stemming from isolation and pandemic-related anxiety has subsided. The legalization of recreational marijuana across 24 states has undercut the illicit drug trade. And the proliferation of on-street cameras has helped investigators more quickly nab suspects, reducing retaliatory shootings.
“Body-worn cameras, as well as the use of camera data from streets, institutions, universities, the private sector — those have been really big assets in investigational crime,” explains William Pelfrey Jr., professor of criminal justice and homeland security at Virginia Commonwealth University. “The city of Richmond and Henrico County have also been aggressive in things like violence interrupters [civilians trained to intervene and head off conflicts], anti-gang work, officers gaining the trust of community members.”
Henrico Police Chief Eric English says improved technology and better police work has led to quicker arrests following shootings. “When you take individuals off the street very quickly after they’ve committed a crime,” English says, “it has the potential to prevent other crimes from occurring.”
Also critical, English adds, is Henrico’s push to take illegal guns off the streets. Since 2020, the department has seized or recovered more than 5,600 firearms. It’s a challenge that’s growing more difficult as more young people carry guns. “They’re getting in the hands of the wrong individuals, and they’re getting younger and younger,” English says.
Ditto for Richmond Police, but Chief Rick Edwards says the department has seen a noticeable drop in overall shootings. Through the first six months of 2026, the department recorded 83 fatal and nonfatal shootings, a 13-year low. At mid-year, homicides were also at the lowest point in at least a decade.
