Homicides so far this year

From January through June, murder in New York City has risen by 21% compared to the same period last year (161 compared to 133).
For Los Angeles through either June or August, it has fallen by 11 percent (through June down to 299 from 335, through August up to 392 from 440).
From January through June, Houston's murder rate fell by 37% (90 compared to 143).
From January through June, Philadelphia's murder rate is actually up 8.9% from the same period last year (up to 159 from 146). From January 1 to September 13, it is up 4.6% (up to 229 from 219).

For those four cities, the total change in murders is -6.3%.

By contrast, as I have noted previously, Chicago's total number of murders fell by 14%. Chicago drop in murders was the largest drop since the 1982 handgun ban.

This wasn't what was supposed to happen. From the Peoria Star Journal:

Chicago Mayor Richard Daley called it a "very frightening decision" and evoked images of the "Old West" where "you have a gun and I have a gun and we'll settle it in the streets." . . .

From Fox News:

District of Columbia Mayor Adrian Fenty responded with a plan to require residents of the nation's capital to register their handguns. "More handguns in the District of Columbia will only lead to more handgun violence," Fenty said. . . .

Side note: I haven't gone through the murders for the next five largest cities, but I did notice that San Jose, the 10th largest city, had a large increase in murders this year.

In San Jose, the number of homicides rose 73% to 26 this year through July compared with the same period a year earlier, the highest year-to-year increase the city has experienced in at least the last 10 years, according to city and state records. . . .

It also looks as if Indianapolis had an increase in murders during the first six months of the year (see here and here).