Gothamist
A non-profit newsroom, powered by WNYC.
Gothamist
Listen Live
News
Report: NYPD & NYCHA Communication Breakdown Caused Spike In Crime
By
Emma Whitford
Published Dec 9, 2015
Modified Dec 9, 2015
Share
FacebookTwitterRedditEmail
Never miss a story
Email address
By submitting your information, you're agreeing to receive communications from New York Public Radio in accordance with our Terms .
By
Emma Whitford
Published Dec 9, 2015
Modified Dec 9, 2015
Share
FacebookTwitterRedditEmail
We rely on your support to make local news available to all
Make your contribution now and help Gothamist thrive in 2026. Donate today
Gothamist is funded by sponsors and member donations
For years the NYPD has failed to communicate with the New York City Housing Authority about all arrests on public housing property—as well as arrests of public housing residents—despite the fact that communication of such information has been required since the late 1960s, according to a report [PDF] released this week by the Department of Investigation.
The report suggests that this "systemic failure" in communication has boosted the disproportionately high crime rates on NYCHA properties versus the rest of the city.
While about 5% of NYC residents live in public housing, 15% of homicides, 11% of rapes, and 10% of felony assaults in the city take place on the premises, the report found.
In order to conduct its investigation, the DOI reviewed more than 1,300 arrest reports pertaining to NYCHA properties or residents over the course of March 2015. The "great majority" of these arrests involved possession of small amounts of marijuana or other drugs, trespassing, and domestic violence.
Twenty seven of the 1,000+ arrests were for violent and drug-related crimes that, according to the NYPD's patrol guide, must be reported to NYCHA. The DOI found that 9 of these incidents were never reported.
Among those arrests were a resident arrested in front of the Mitchell Houses in the Bronx with a loaded pistol, a resident who allegedly threatened a neighbor with a machete, and a resident who allegedly attempted to rape the complainant inside of a NYCHA apartment.
Once NYCHA is informed of a resident arrested for an alleged violent or drug-related crime, the authority has the right to remove that individual from the premises using its discretion. A process called "Permanent Exclusion" allows NYCHA to evict individual residents who endanger "their neighbors' safety or peaceful tenancy."
Enforcement of permanent exclusion is "essentially toothless," the report charges, accusing NYCHA of letting criminal offenders remain in their housing without consequences.
In response to the report, NYCHA spokesman David Farber said in a statement to the NY Times that "NYCHA is not expanding the criteria for eviction or exclusion; rather, the authority is working with the NYPD to sharpen its policy so it moves more quickly to exclude or evict from NYCHA individuals who commit very serious offenses."
Robert Gangi, Director of the Police Reform Organizing Project, questioned the fairness of basing the dangerousness of an individual primarily off of an arrest, which precedes any proof of guilt.
"How do you determine who a 'thug' is? Is it based on the arrest?" he said. "Being arrested isn't a sure sign of that you're dangerous or predatory person. The NYPD makes so many frivolous arrests, primarily of people of color, who mainly occupy public housing. There should be a system to assess the dangerousness of an individual on a case-by-case basis."
Tagged
arrests
dangerousness
nycha
violent crime
Emma Whitford
Read more
Gothamist is funded by sponsors and member donations
Gothamist is funded by sponsors and member donations
MORE news
2 pedestrians killed in Bronx crash after driver ran red light, police say
The NYPD said the investigation is continuing and no one had been arrested Saturday.
By
Brittany Kriegstein
and
Ann Givens
Published Oct 10, 2026 at 1:24 p.m. ET
Rain could put a damper on NYC’s long weekend. Here’s when it will clear.
Remnants of Hurricane Isaias could bring more than an inch of rain, gusty winds and even a thunderstorm Sunday before conditions improve Monday.
By
Brittany Kriegstein
News
Rain could put a damper on NYC’s long weekend. Here’s when it will clear.
Remnants of Hurricane Isaias could bring more than an inch of rain, gusty winds and even a thunderstorm Sunday before conditions improve Monday.
By
Brittany Kriegstein
Holy civics! NYC schools' own comic books in the spotlight at Comic Con
By
Jessica Gould
What we know about the ICE shooting in NYC
By
Karen Yi
DSA to Mamdani: Fire NYPD commissioner if ICE doesn't leave NYC
By
Elizabeth Kim
,
Brigid Bergin
and
Ben Feuerherd
Never miss a story
Catch up on the most important headlines with a roundup of essential NYC stories, delivered to your inbox daily.
Sign upEmail address
By submitting your information, you're agreeing to receive communications from New York Public Radio in accordance with our Terms .