Flint Mayor Dayne Walling and Flint's public safety director held a news conference on public safety Wednesday.
Fifty homicides is not far off from what police say is the record high, which is 61 homicides that the city saw in 1986.
"I've lived in Flint all my life," said Mercedes Atkins. "I was born in the '50s."
Atkins says she's seen it bad before, but she doesn't remember children getting killed like they are. Crime has hit home for her. One of those children killed this year was her grandson, Eric Paxton Jr., who was murdered on his 18th birthday in August.
"It's too many," said Tonya Atkins, Paxton's aunt. "I would expect that in five, six years and not nine months.
"Before it hit us, I didn't realize how it affects family and how it affects families involved. But now I'm seeing the bigger picture."
The record set in 1986 marks the same year of Margaret Eby's high-profile murder. Eby was a music professor at the University of Michigan-Flint.
Twenty-four years later, one man is suspected in four Flint stabbing homicides. There have been numerous shooting deaths, and there was even a double homicide less than two weeks ago.
"We need protection," Tonya Atkins said. "It's scary."
"If they're not going to do it downtown, we'll have to do it ourselves," Mercedes Atkins said.
The mayor, police chief and a local pastor met with media because this number is of great concern to them.
Walling says the police department is doing the best it can in these difficult budget times. However, he says the department can't do it alone and it needs help from city residents.
"Whether we're talking about five homicides, 25 homicides or 50 homicides, we're talking about too many," Walling said.
Walling addressed the challenge to public safety in the city.
"The vast majority of these violent and deadly incidents are directly tied to gangs and drugs," he said.
With three months left in the year, Walling believes one way of reducing crime is in the Cease Fire initiative unveiled earlier this year.
It's program that involves the community and faith based-community.
"We've also been recruiting volunteers to be a part of their own block club, their own crime watch, their own neighborhood association," Walling said.
City leaders say they are asking for help as the numbers in the police department continue to shrink.
"Anything that we can possibly think of or we get information on that we can do within the budget that we have right now, we are doing," said Police Chief Alvern Lock.
Right now, the city is trying to figure out what to do about nearly 10 positions not funded in the current budget.
This comes as it explores partnering with police departments at the city's colleges and universities.
In the meantime, city leaders say the only way the Flint can keep from breaking the record 61 homicides from more than 20 years ago is by speaking up.
"We're doing all that we can do, and that's why we're doing all that we can and asking people for help from the community to alleviate this problem," Lock said.
Lock says in many of the homicides they have suspects or a person of interest, but not enough information to close the case.
He's asking anyone with information to call (810) 237-6812. You can remain anonymous.
