Atlanta's Murder Rate Allegedly Declined By 35% Since YSL & YFN RICO Arrests

The YSL and YFN RICO cases are among the most high-profile and impactful legal issues in hip-hop right now, especially for the city of Atlanta, Georgia. However, their ongoing proceedings have resulted in a lot of debate and potential misinformation regarding these incidents. While the YFN trial most recently resulted in a rejected plea deal, the YSL trial is trudging along slowly but surely. Now, fans are debating some allegations brought forth by the Earn Your Leisure media outlet claiming that the city's murder rate has gone down 35% since these arrests. Apparently, this information comes directly from the District Attorney's office.

"My manager is doing a documentary on the D.A.," one of the podcast participants alleged. "D.A.'s office. And they said since Thug and the YSL and the YFN crews have been locked up, the murders have gone down 35%. So, I think when you look at life, and you look at where we are, Atlanta's in a reconstruction musically and who we are as a city. You know what I mean?" Of course, there are a lot of different asterisks to place here with this alleged data.

Allegations On The Impact Of YSL & YFN Cases On Atlanta's Murder Rate

For one, there have been no such reports on the shift in Atlanta's murder rate since these arrests, at least spread on a wide scale. As such, this is unconfirmed information that, although hopefully true, might misrepresent the actual impact of these arrests and unjustly attribute blame on these artistic groups. After all, it's hard to determine whether that was the true factor or if there are other variables at play. Many on social media pointed out that crime could've diminished because these cases made people less prone to commit these crimes, not because YSL and YFN were committing them all. In addition, given that their arrests are about a year apart, many pointed out that this change should've been reflected from the few months since their respective incarcerations.

Also, this hasn't been a consistent decline, as numbers go up and down throughout the years. As for the information that does exist on Atlanta's murder rate, you will also find a few conflicting reports. Still, these are heavy conclusions to reach, and it's unclear in this clip whether the participant is specifically blaming these groups. With both trials still underway, audiences have to realize that these systemic issues are larger than rap cliques. On that note, stay up to date on HNHH for the latest on the YSL and YFN cases.