Murder and Extremism in 2017: Major Findings

ADL’s Center on Extremism has been tracking data on domestic extremist-related murder in the U.S. since 1970. The 2017 assessment found:

With 34 total deaths, 2017 was the fifth deadliest year for extremist violence since 1970, but there was a marked decline from the much higher total fatalities recorded in 2016 and 2015.

The 18 white supremacist murders included several killings linked to the alt right as that movement expanded its operations in 2017 from the internet into the physical world – raising the likely possibility of more such violent acts in the future.

Unlike 2016, a year dominated by the Pulse nightclub shootings in Orlando, Florida, committed by an Islamic extremist, a majority of the 2017 murders were committed by right-wing extremists, primarily white supremacists, as has typically been the case most years.

Far-right extremist violence accounted for 59 percent of the total, or 20 deaths.

An Islamic extremist still committed the single deadliest incident in 2017: the New York City bike path vehicular homicide attack, which killed eight people.