FBI data shows murder rates are up, with the latest figures showing a staggering 21,570 murders happening nationwide in 2020.

Dr. Kim Davies teaches a sociology of murder course at Augusta University and was recently interviewed on the topic by a local CBS affiliate.

Davies has developed the course to help educate students and get them thinking about ways they can bring awareness to the violent crime problem. Students put a tick on the sidewalk in chalk to represent every murder to offer a better understanding of the number of families affected.

“If I put that number on the board, it looks like a big number," said Davies. "But nobody really knows what that is. If we tick every mark and we say, ‘Look, that’s a victim,’ it means more to the students.”

Davies also reiterates that even though this current number is probably the highest it’s ever been since she's been offering this class, it's not at an all-time high.

"Murder was higher in the '90s when I was in grad school, but it’s been going down, down, down. Hopefully it’s not a trend where we continue up, but we’re back up.”

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Davies is a sociologically trained criminologist with academic focus is on homicide and violence. Her most recent book, The Murder Book: Understanding Homicide Today, explores topics such as the increase in mass murders, the change in Stand Your Ground laws across the country and police shootings as it relates to the Black Lives Matter movement.

Davies is available to speak with media about this subject – simply click on her icon now to arrange an interview today.