About

The murdermap project began in 2010 with the aim of covering every single case of homicide (murder and manslaughter) from crime to conviction to reveal the stories behind the crime figures.

In March 2019 the original website was relaunched as a wordpress blog and the old map had to be retired. While much of the site remains free to read, some features and court reports are only available to subscribers. Separate maps and improved statistics are now available for every year from 2019 onwards, we are working on restoring all of the old content including a historical murder map of London dating back to the early 19th Century.

We have never received any money from government agencies, charities, educational establishments or wealthy philanthropists. If you would like to change that then get in touch via email at mailbox@murdermap.co.uk or consider donating via the Paypal link below.

Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ)

Why do you cover manslaughter as well as murder?

We decided to cover all homicides because we found it impossible to separate murder and manslaughter without causing even more confusion. For example, a significant proportion of murder cases end up as manslaughter cases because the defendant is cleared of murder on the basis of mental illness, loss of control or lack of intent. If we were only covering murders then we would probably have to delete those cases. This would potentially prevent us from giving the public a true picture of the nature of murder in London.

Where do you get your information?

A combination of court reports, police and prosecution statements, newspaper reports and information provided by members of the public. We strive for accuracy at all times. However, if you are concerned about any of our reports, please contact us at mailbox@murdermap.co.uk

How do you decide whether to add a case or not?

In many cases it is obvious whether a case of murder or manslaughter should be on the database. But often it is not clear cut and, in the absence of a definitive answer from the police, it comes down to our own judgment.

For example, we include cases where a suspect is charged with murder but is acquitted on the grounds of self defence. Although nobody has been convicted, the case is classed as ‘solved.’ The site does not include cases of ‘justifiable homicide by police’ unless someone is charged with murder or manslaughter. This explains why we include the death of Ian Tomlinson but not Jean Charles de Menezes.

Several cases are investigated by police as ‘unexplained’ or ‘suspicious’ deaths. These are not placed on the database until they are officially classed as homicides. We will however add many of these deaths below the list of each year’s cases to explain why they are not included. (See the list of homicides in 2020 for an example).

What date do you use for each case?

We normally use the date of death if it is different from the date of the fatal attack (although they are usually the same). The main reason for this is that a case only becomes a murder when the victim has died. Admittedly this could be confusing when viewed on a map, but we attempt to make it clear in the case summary.

Why are murdermap’s statistics different from the police?

There are several reasons why our website might show a slightly different number of homicides to the statistics issued by the Metropolitan Police.

One reason for this is the way the police record the date of any homicide. Whereas murdermap lists every case under the date of death, the police use a ‘recorded date’ when the victim became the subject of a murder investigation. This might occur weeks, months or years after the death.

In other cases the police do not release details until weeks, months or years after the event (or we only discover them at court). This mostly tends to include cases involving infants and gross negligence mansalughter.

We should also make clear that we include homicides in the area covered by all 33 London boroughs. Three forces investigate homicides in this area – the Metropolitan Police, the British Transport Police and the City of London Police – and each will keep their own figures for homicides.

How can I contact murdermap?

If you know of any recent cases that we may have missed, have suggestions for stories or potential improvements to the website, or wish to make a complaint then please get in touch by email at mailbox@murdermap.co.uk