Madison sees drop in violent crime in 2025
The City of Madison experienced a drop in violent and property crimes in 2025.
The drop comes as the Madison Police Department continues its focus on community outreach and data-driven patrol strategies.
"By using incident-related data, we can identify crime trends and direct resources more effectively," said Madison Police Chief John Patterson.
This approach has cleared the way for meaningful partnerships with public health departments, community organizations, mental health professionals and the Madison Metropolitan School District.
"We continue to see real results thanks to the City’s holistic approach to preventing violence and crime in our community. I want to thank Chief Patterson for leading MPD's portion of this work," said Mayor Satya Rhodes-Conway. "In order to keep Madison safe, we need to focus both on enforcement and on addressing the underlying causes of violence, which requires a whole of government response. We have more work to do, but I'm encouraged by our progress so far.”
Here's a breakdown of the data regarding 2025 crimes.
The Data
Shots Fired and Homicides
Last year, officers responded to 117 reports of gunshots being fired in our community. This is a 10.7-percent decrease compared to 2024. The number of shots fired incidents is also down more than 24 percent from the three-year average.
MPD investigated five homicides in 2025 compared to seven in 2024.
Officers have recovered 323 casings during these incidents from this past year, which is a 22.9-percent decrease compared to 2024.
Burglaries
There were 406 burglaries in Madison last year, down more than 16 percent compared to the previous year.
Burglaries are also down more than 42 percent compared to the three-year average.
Robberies
Last year, 106 robbery cases were reported. This is a 2-percent decrease from those reported in 2024. Robberies remain down more than 14 percent compared to the three-year average.
Stolen Autos
As a community, there were 284 vehicles reported stolen in 2025. These incidents were down nearly 24 percent compared to 2024. There was a 50-percent decrease in stolen autos compared to the three-year average.
The City of Madison is currently seeing a spike in stolen auto cases in 2026. The majority of these incidents are occurring on the east and north sides of the city.
Theft from Autos
There were 570 theft from auto incidents in 2025, down more than 23 percent from 2024. This is also a 19.3-percent decrease compared to the three-year average.
The Madison Police Department encourages everyone in our community to remove valuables from their vehicle, lock their vehicles and when possible park in a garage or well-lit area.
Opiate/Opioid Overdoses
Officers responded to 187 known opiate or opioid overdoses in 2025. This is down more than 16 percent compared to 2024 and nearly 28 percent compared to the three-year average.
There were 19 suspected opiate or opioid overdose deaths in 2025, down nearly 39 percent compared to 2024.
These figures only include opiate or opioid deaths with police involvement and clear evidence of an overdose. The Madison Police Department actively seeks opportunities to divert and deflect individuals from the justice system.
Community Partnerships
The Madison Police Department believes this downward trend is the result of tighter collaboration with prevention partners.
Officers connect monthly with one of those partners – Public Health Madison and Dane County's Violence Prevent Unit.
"Community safety requires trust, collaboration and shared responsibility. Our partnership with Madison Police centers on supporting the people most impacted by violence," said Aurielle Smith, Director of Community Initiatives at Public Health Madison & Dane County. "This happens not just through response, but also through prevention, mediation, and connection to housing, employment and behavioral health resources. Together, we are investing in long-term safety and stability.”
