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NYC Murder Rate Drops To New Historic Low In 2014
By
Jen Chung
Published Jan 1, 2015
Modified Jan 1, 2015
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By
Jen Chung
Published Jan 1, 2015
Modified Jan 1, 2015
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In January of 2014, NYC's murders increased from 21 to 28, leading Republican mayoral candidate/loser Joe Lhota to say "told ya so." But by the end of 2014, progressive Mayor Bill de Blasio has this statistic: 328 murders for the year, the lowest since the NYPD started keeping track in 1963.
Other crimes are also down: Grand larcenies, rapes, burglaries and robberies, which the NY Times calls "a bellwether crime that erodes public perception of safety." NYPD deputy commissioner of operations Dermot Shea said, "Across the board in all categories — kids on kids, elderly victims, commercial robberies, group wolf pack robberies, robberies of Apple iPhones — down."
De Blasio praised the NYPD and its new additions during a police cadet graduation ceremony earlier this week: "You are joining a police department that, last year, had the most extraordinary year in fighting crime - a legendary year, a year that they said couldn't be beat. But this year - 2014 - this NYPD beat the record. Crime is down almost 5 percent compared to last year. That is an achievement for the ages, and you will be part of a team that has surpassed every expectation, that has gone farther than anyone has gone before."
But as the Times points out, "[T]here is little celebration among the city’s police officers, who remain in mourning after the recent killings of two comrades. They have also heard calls to reverse their policing practices and found their union representatives locked in a bitter public struggle with the mayor..."
The police are reportedly not doing their job—a.k.a., making arrests or giving summons—as part of their retaliation against de Blasio, which has led to an actual Times editorial saying cops need to get back to work.
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crime
mayor de blasio
murder rate
nypd
police commissioner Bratton
Jen Chung
Jen Chung is a former WNYC and Gothamist editor.
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