Parkland Shootings Contribute To A Rise In Florida Murders
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TALLAHASSEE (CBSMiami/AP) — A rise in murders in Florida can be attributed to the mass shooting at a Parkland high school.
The school shooting that left 17 dead drove up the number of Florida murders during the first six months of 2018 compared to the same period last year.
Overall, the number of Florida crimes in the first half of the year dropped by 8 percent. But the Florida Department of Law Enforcement reported 545 murders, including the 17 at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School in Parkland.
That compares to 531 murders in the first half of 2017.
Guns were used in 419 of Florida's murders in the first half of this year, or 77 percent of the total.
Robberies were down 10.8 percent, and burglaries were down 18.2 percent.
The first half of the year also saw a rise in reported rapes, from 4,073 in the first six months of 2017 to 4,227 in the same period this year.
(© Copyright 2018 CBS Broadcasting Inc. All Rights Reserved. The Associated Press contributed to this report.)