INDIANAPOLIS — Following a pair of deadly shootings on Tuesday, Indianapolis has seen more than 200 total homicides for the third year in a row.

Police believe a domestic incident at a mobile home park on Nightsong left one man shot to death on Tuesday. That marked the 200th homicide of the year.

Ten hours later another man was shot to death at a business along Massachusetts avenue.  The killing brought the total number of homicides in the city to 201.

That’s a deadly number the city has only seen three times in history.

“I think the numbers are a travesty to what’s happening in our community,” said Aaron Williams with the City of Peace Coalition.  “The question so many people ask is when is enough enough?”

“One homicide is unacceptable, but we’re moving in the right direction.  We’re making progress,” said Indianapolis mayor Joe Hogsett.

Mayor Hogsett makes that claim because the numbers show, compared to the same time last year when there were 241 homicides on this date, fewer people have been killed this year.

However, the numbers are still significantly higher than any year prior to 2020.   In fact, 201 homicides is already more than the city saw for any entire year prior to the pandemic.

“The numbers are headed in the right direction, but we’ve still got a long way to go,” said Hogsett.  “There’s no question the pandemic had a profound effect not just on Indianapolis but on urban areas throughout the country.  My goal is to lower than number as low as we can possibly make it.”

“We don’t want this to be a new normal.  We want to make sure we’re listening to the community to see what caused this to be higher than in years past,” said Lauren Rodriguez with the Office of Public Health and Safety.

Rodriguez adds that the city continues to hire peacemakers, allowing for better engagement with the  community.

“Our strategy is pivoting with what our community needs, so more one on one life coaching,” said Rodriguez.

The city has also invested millions of dollars to fund more police officers and upgrade crime fighting technology.

Still, Aaron Williams says the community still needs to play a greater role reducing the violence.

“If we do not hold our own accountable and say we don’t resolve conflicts with violence, the numbers will continue to increase,” said Williams.

The mayor points out 188 of this year’s homicides have been deemed criminal murders.  That number is also down compared to last year, although that number does tend to fluctuate.