Mardi Gras in 'Murder Capital': New Orleans residents concerned crime crisis creates 'fear factor'

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'Let the good times roll!' After a year of shutdowns, Mardi Gras returns to New Orleans

COVID-19 shut down Mardi Gras parades last year, but the tradition is making its comeback.

New Orleans is celebrating its first Mardi Gras after being named the "murder capital" of the country, and some residents are concerned how that new nickname could impact the world-renowned festival for which the city has become known across the globe.

The Big Easy saw 277 homicides in 2022, the highest number that city has seen since 1996, according to the Metropolitan Crime Commission. In September, the city was named the "murder capital" after surpassing St. Louis in homicides per capita, and the killings haven't slowed since then.

So far in 2023, homicides are up by 14% when compared to 2022, but shootings, carjackings and armed robberies are all down when compared to this point in 2022.

Mardi Gras, which takes place on Feb. 21 this year, is widely seen as an annual economic boom for the city as around 1 million people visit the city, New Orleans & Company Senior Vice President for Communications Kelly Schulz told WWL-TV. But some residents who spoke with Fox News Digital say they're concerned that the Big Easy's crime crisis could make it hard for the city to reap the full benefits from the world-renowned festival.

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A home is decorated with a Mardi Gras jester statue on Jan. 27, 2021, in New Orleans. (Erika Goldring / Getty Images)

Police vehicles block access to Bourbon Street in New Orleans, Feb. 16, 2021. The city saw an increase in murders in 2022. (Bryan Tarnowski / Bloomberg via Getty Images)

The surge in tourism is forcing Democrat Mayor LaToya Cantrell and the New Orleans Police Department to bring in up to 200 more officers from around the state to help patrol the Mardi Gras parades.

Mary Murdock, co-owner of Betsy’s Pancake House in New Orleans, told Fox News Digital that customers have told her they simply avoid coming to the city because of crime, a sentiment that otherwise devoted Mardi Gras goers could share.

"I have had remarks that said because of the crime we don't come to New Orleans," Murdock said.

"Our business is down a lot," Murdock said, partially blaming crime in addition to steep competition within New Orleans. "We just don't know how to solve it."

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New Orleans Mayor LaToya Cantrell speaks during the Essence Festival of Culture on July 2, 2022, in New Orleans. (Paras Griffin / Getty Images for Essence)

The pancake house has been in operation since 1989, when Murdock's mother opened it. Murdock said that she first saw the decrease in customers in the first days of the coronavirus, when business "dropped down to almost nothing."

As the COVID-19 pandemic subsided, Murdock says the restaurant hasn't fully regained its customer base, "For now within a year and a half, it's been just terrible."

"Somebody has got to do something regarding crime. The crime needs to just decrease. … They put them in jail, and they let them back out," Murdock said. "We love New Orleans … but we in New Orleans need some help."

"We love New Orleans … but we in New Orleans need some help."

— Mary Murdock, co-owner of Betsy’s Pancake House in New Orleans

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A police officer walks down a nearly deserted Bourbon Street during Mardi Gras in the French Quarter of New Orleans, Feb. 16, 2021. (AP Photo / Gerald Herbert)

Ronal Serpas, former superintendent of the New Orleans Police Department, told Fox News Digital that the city's newly minted nickname could create a "fear factor" as Mardi Gras tourists descend on the city. 

"Small business and restaurants rely on foot traffic. They rely on people coming to their locations. And in many cases in the city, New Orleans, where a five-year unrelenting increase in armed robberies and carjackings and shootings, that creates a fear factor," Serpas said. "Businesses are very afraid of crime in New Orleans. So, it must have an impact."

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A crime scene is seen on New Orleans' famous Bourbon Street. (FOX8 New Orleans WVUE)

Serpas says that police officer recruitment needs to become a higher priority for the city if it wants to tackle the crime increase.

"The rate at which people are being hired to replace are at all-time lows. The willingness of the city to essentially throw money at policing like many are doing now with signing bonuses and retention bonuses, the jury is still way out as to whether or not that actually changes people's individual decisions to any great extent."

Fox News' Emma Colton contributed to this report.