NEW YORK CITY saw fewer murders and shootings in the past 12 months than it has in any other year of its recorded history.
The remarkable statistics show a decline of 19 per cent in the number of homicides since 2011. The decrease means New York’s murder rate has fallen to 3.8 homicides per 100,000 residents.
During 2012, there were 414 murders and 1,353 shootings. The previous low for shootings was 1,420 in 2009.
Shootings have decreased by 8.5 percent so far this year compared to 2011 and 14.5 percent since 2001.
The announcement from Mayor Michael Bloomberg and Police Commissioner Raymond Kelly this week follows a report last month about a crime-free day in Manhattan.
Bloomberg commented, “The fact that the safest big city in America is safer than ever is a testament to the hard work and determination of the men and women who put their lives on the line for us every day – and it also reflects our commitment to doing everything possible to stop gun violence.”
“We’re taking 8,000 weapons annually out of the hands of people we stop, 800 of them illegal handguns,” added Commissioner Kelly. “We’re preventing crimes before someone is killed and before someone else has to go to prison for murder or other serious crimes. We’re also forging new alliances with advocates for public safety in every corner of the city.”
Guns remain the leading cause of murder in the city. Of the 414 homicides so far this year, 237 were by firearms.
The most murders New York City recorded in a single year was 2,245 murders in 1990 – an average of six deaths a day. Today, it averages closer to one murder a day – even though the city’s population has grown by roughly a million people in the past 22 years.
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