Photo by AlbinoFlea

Despite two more killings over the weekend, D.C. is likely to finish off 2012 with fewer than 100 homicides, and could even come in under the 95 killings that were registered in 1963.

City officials prided themselves on finishing at 108 murders last year, and set their sights on keeping the tally under 100 for 2012. As of late last week, it looks like they will get their wish: 86 killings were recorded through December 28. Last week, D.C. Police Chief Cathy Lanier told Homicide Watch called the new low a “good milestone”:

When I think about the number from where I started from in 1990 when we had 479, it seems dramatic. I’ve said since ‘07 our tipping point is less than 100 and we can do it. But I still think about 82 families who have lost somebody. So it’s certainly not, it’s not victory. But it feels like a good milestone for us. I think we passed the tipping point.

Of course, while the number of killings is a symbolic measure of how well D.C. is doing—especially given the city’s history—it’s also an imperfect way to measure the safety of the city’s residents. According to police crime statistics, for one, assaults with a dangerous weapon are up by seven percent over last year, while sex abuse crimes have jumped a surprising 51 percent. All told, crime is up four percent from 2011 levels. (Want to find out where the crime is around your house? Tough luck—the city’s crime mapping tool has been down since September.)

The issue is sure to become political next year, as Mayor Vince Gray will continue to push for more police officers to be added to the force. (Currently, there are just under 3,900.) Gray recently tried to push the D.C. Council to appropriate the money to hire 48 new officers and direct revenue from the city’s traffic camera program to add 100 more—bringing the force to 4,000—but was rebuffed on both fronts. Legislators have said that while they want don’t want to see the force go under the 3,800 mark, they want the department to more carefully analyze how many officers are needed for the city.