Detroit reports 301 homicides this year, up 19 percent

DETROIT, Nov. 8 (UPI) -- Detroit's homicide rate has spiked by nearly 19 percent because of the number of guns in the city, police said.

Police Chief Ralph Godbee told residents on the city's west side that police are having "a bear of a time getting our arms around" the widespread number of guns in the city, The Detroit News reported Tuesday.

Police said some of the homicides also involved suspects who were on probation for previous crimes.

The city's latest crime figures show a nearly 19 percent increase in homicides over the past year, with 301 homicides reported through Sunday. Overall crime is down about 7 percent from July 1 to Sept. 30, the newspaper said.

Godbee has asked the city to fund cutting-edge software that uses sensor placed throughout the city to collect and filter sounds to locate gunshots so officers can be deployed efficiently.