NYC Mayor Eric Adams on rampant crime: 'We must be serious about it'
New York City Mayor Eric Adams joined 'America's Newsroom' to discuss the Big Apple's crime surge.
Top New York City Police Department leaders highlighted in a press conference Wednesday that murders and shootings in the city fell over the summer months, but condemned how repeat offenders have driven much of the crime.
"One of the things that's not working is we continue to let people out who prey on New Yorkers. We're not talking about first time offenders here, ladies and gentlemen. We're talking about people that continue to get arrested," Chief of Crime Control Strategies Michael Lipetri said Wednesday. "I'm not talking about what we think they did. These are handcuffed, probable cause, getting arrested, going in front of a judge, walking out the door and committing another crime against New Yorkers. Those crimes are fueled by recidivism. Those individuals are out walking around the streets in New York City right now."
NYPD executives gathered on Wednesday afternoon to discuss initiatives they took to drive down murders and shootings in the city.
Data released by the city earlier this week found murders decreased by 54% in August compared to August 2021, while shootings fell by 30% compared to the previous August. From May 1 through Sept. 5, shooting incidents were down 19% and murders were down 13%.
NYC CRIME: POLICE OUTLINE 'WORST OF THE WORST' REPEAT OFFENDERS – SOME WITH MORE THAN 95 ARRESTS
NYPD executives gather for news conference on Sept. 7, 2022. (NYPD News/Twitter)
Though murders and shootings fell, other crimes such as burglary, grand larceny, felony assault, robbery, and grand larceny auto have all risen by between 9% and 38% in August compared to the same month in 2021.
NEW YORK CITY CAPS OFF SUMMER WITH DROP IN MURDERS, SHOOTINGS
The NYPD pointed to its Summer Violence Reduction Plan, which increased localized deployments of officers to areas of the city that needed the most patrolling, as well as its increase in gun arrests – which is at a 27-year high this year – for the drop in murders and shootings.
"The NYPD will never stop fighting for the streets, subways and neighborhoods and for all New Yorkers. We will always continue to put victims first," Police Commissioner Keechant L. Sewell said.
Among their remarks, the executives denounced how almost a quarter of people who were arrested in the city with an illegal firearm were previously convicted felons, while 17% of those arrested with an illegal gun in the city have an open felony. Lipetri said that about 80% of those arrested with a gun "are walking around today."
NYPD (New York Police Department) sign with logo. (iStock)
The same pattern was found among those arrested for robbery.
"We are arresting for robbery previously convicted felons that have preyed on New Yorkers many times before our arrests this year," Lipetri said. "Twenty-six percent of people arrested for a robbery this year has an open felony, and 25% are previously convicted felons."
Lipetri called for consequences in the city over recidivism.
"The arrest data shows that we are arresting individuals more than once for these crimes than ever before. And the vast majority of them, about 80%, are walking around the streets in New York City now. We talk about consequences, there needs to be consequences when it comes to recidivism in New York City," he said.
NEW YORK, NEW YORK - JUNE 06: New York Mayor Eric Adams is joined by NYPD Deputy Chief Jason Savino (left) and NYPD Chief of Detectives James Essig at a Brooklyn police facility where it was announced that arrests have been made against violent street gangs on June 06, 2022, in New York City. ((Photo by Spencer Platt/Getty Images))
Mayor Eric Adams has previously spoken out against bail reform in the state, which went into effect in 2020 and eliminated cash bail options for most nonviolent crimes and misdemeanors.
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"They say the definition of insanity is to do the same thing repeatedly, but expect different results," Adams told reporters earlier this summer. "Our criminal justice system is insane. It is dangerous, it's harmful, and it's destroying the fabric of our city."
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