MIAMI-DADE COUNTY, Fla. – Officers reported on Wednesday that shootings in Miami-Dade County decreased about 40% overall this summer. They credited Operation Summer Heat, an interagency effort to reduce gun violence.
The operation yielded about 1,000 firearms, more than 3,000 arrests, and close to 80 hits connecting ballistics to a crime.
They had the help of the National Integrated Ballistic Information Network, a database of images of spent bullets and cartridge cases found at crime scenes.
While homicides are down about 7%, the Miami-Dade Police Department reported that so far this year five children have been shot and killed compared to seven in 2020. Just this weekend, three children were shot, including a 14-year-old murder victim.
The suspect is still out there and there is a $5,000 reward for information leading to an arrest in the case. Operation Summer Heat will continue until the end of this year.