Twin Cities data shows major crimes have trended downward in some areas over the last year, but challenges still linger.

Authorities in Minneapolis and St. Paul are still working to reduce violence to pre-pandemic levels. In both cities, the big challenge is who is committing the crimes.

“One homicide is too many. So until we get to zero with all levels of violence in our city, it’s still too much,” said Tyrone Terrill with the African American Leadership Council.

The Twin Cities faced identical challenges in 2024: homicides committed by kids.

Terrill works with young people to keep at-risk kids on the right path.

“We’ve got to stop putting our young people in a situation to access the guns, to feel that they have to be that violent, where they don’t value their life, or they don’t value anybody else’s life,” Terrill said.

Across the river in Minneapolis, Police Chief Brian O’Hara expressed a similar concern in a December interview.

“The average age of kids involved has gotten younger. Especially this year,” O’Hara said.

He said half of the juveniles shot in the city are under the age of 15.

In St. Paul, police reported a slight dip in homicides. There were 30 homicides in the capital city last year, compared with 33 in 2023.

The Minneapolis Police Department’s crime dashboard shows the city’s 76 homicides in 2024 was an increase from 2023, when there were 72. However, the data shows overall gun violence, from shots fired to gunshot wound victims, decreased.

Terrill said in 2024 even with losses, there were some wins.

“We’ve kept a lot of young men and young girls out of jail from continuing this path of violence,” Terrill said. “The majority of our young people are doing great things. We just have to deal with the 4% who are involved in crimes like robberies, homicides and carjackings.”

RELATED: St. Paul leaders push for gun violence intervention amid recent string of homicides

There is a St. Paul plan in motion to combat youth violence with partners on the city and county level.

Leaders just had a meeting with the community in December to discuss solutions to the problem.