Baltimore Homicides Approach Record High

The month of May approached an all-time high for homicides in the city of Baltimore.

With 43 reported homicides last month, May 2015 counts the most in more than 40 years, according to the Baltimore Sun recordkeeping.

City records online only date back to 2011, show the most homicides committed in a one-month span of time peak at 27. The five deadliest months since 1970, according to the Sun, include:

• December 1971: 44
• August 1972: 45
• August 1990: 42
• August 1996: 39
• May 2015: 43

U.S. Census Bureau estimates put Baltimore's population around 622,000, down 31 percent from about 906,000 in 1970.

Homicides rose in May as arrests plummeted, which some attribute to increased scrutiny of police following the April death of Freddie Gray from injuries received in police custody, according to The Associated Press.