DENVER (KDVR) — Denver hasn’t just had its wettest months this spring, it’s also had some of its most violent.

Police were investigating three overnight shootings in downtown Denver on July 1 that sent several people to the hospital. 

Data from the Denver Police Department shows that violent crimes from this year are already higher than in years past. The data looked at the monthly number of robberies, aggravated assaults and murders from 2018 to 2023. Both the monthly number of violent crimes and the total number of violent crimes to date are rising in 2023. 

This May, there was a near-record level of violent crime in Denver.

The Colorado Bureau of Investigation has May 2023 crime data available, and the new numbers are headed in the wrong direction for Denver. There were 640 murders, aggravated assaults and robberies in May, more than any month since 2008 except for July 2022 when there were 684.

Violent crime typically peaks in June, July or August of any given year.

Denver County accounts for nearly one-third of Colorado’s violent crime in 2023, 29.5% overall. Adams County, home to Aurora, accounts for another 21.5%, while El Paso County accounts for 13%.

These three counties alone represent about two-thirds (64%) of Colorado’s violent crime.