Bratton, de Blasio Tout 'Historic' Drop in Crime, Manhattan Numbers Slightly Higher

NYPD Commissioner Bill Bratton and Mayor Bill de Blasio touted "historic" crime numbers at a press conference Monday, and while that's true citywide, numbers are actually slightly up in Manhattan.

Those looking for positives will note shooting incidents are down about 18 percent in the borough, but on the whole, major crime is up 3.77 percent in Manhattan year-to-date.

Citywide in 2016, there were 11 fewer murders and 110 fewer shootings year-to-date from 2015. And brass made special note of June 2016 statistics, which were the lowest for that month since the start of the CompStat era (beginning in 1994).

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“The numbers we’re presenting today are phenomenal: in the first six months of this year, shootings are down 20 percent while gun arrests are up 20 percent," de Blaiso said in a statement. "Under Commissioner Bratton we are using precision policing to tackle gun violence and take these dangerous weapons off our streets. I want to thank all the members of NYPD for their commitment to keeping our city’s neighborhoods safe, while working to deepen the relationship between police and community.”

The numbers in Manhattan are not necessarily great, though, as CompStat paints a mediocre picture in the borough.

In only two of the seven major crimes are statistics down year-to-date from 2015 — murder and burglary. There have have been four fewer murders in Manhattan the first six months of 2016 (18) as compared to 2015 (22). Burglaries are down 33 year-to-date from last year (1,211 vs. 1,244).

But crime is up in Manhattan in the other five categories — rape, robbery, felony assault, grand larceny and grand larceny auto.

There have been five more rapes in 2016 (141) than 2015 (136). Robberies are more or less the same, though they've gone from 1,389 in 2015 to 1,396 in 2016. Felony assaults have made a jump from 1,699 in 2015 to 1,814 in 2016. The total number of grand larcenies has seen a major rise (355) from 7,615 to 7,970, including an increase in 25 auto thefts (362 vs. 337).

The 1st Precinct alone, which covers the Financial District and Tribeca, has seen an increase in four rapes (133 percent) year-to-date in 2016. The 7th Precinct has seen the biggest rise in rapes, with three in the first half of 2015 and 10 so far this year. Rapes are also up 150 percent in Midtown South Precinct and 117 percent in the 30th Precinct (Sugar Hill). The 1st Precinct has seen a 10 percent uptick in major crimes overall, with an 180 percent rise in car thefts.

Murders saw their biggest rise in the 9th Precinct (East Village), where only one murder was committed in the first half of 2015, but four have been committed so far this year. There was also a marked rise in misdemeanor sex crimes from 449 year-to-date last year to 583 so far this year.

On the good side, the 6th Precinct (Greenwich Village) has seen a 26 percent reduction in burglaries. And while the 1st Precinct has seen a marked rise in car thefts, the 13th Precinct (Flatiron, Gramercy, Stuyvesant Town), has seen a decrease of 70 percent. Rapes are down 50 percent in Midtown North Precinct, 62 percent in the 34th Precinct (Inwood) and, most notably, 71 percent in the 24th Precinct (Upper West Side).

Citywide, Bratton and de Blasio said the city's cops are using data, technology and community policing to more effectively zero in on those most responsible for the city's major crimes, including gangs and drug runners.

As a result, the officials said, the city is getting safer even while NYPD officers are having fewer "contacts" — such as stops and frisks — with members of the public.

During the first half of 2016, a total of 48,309 major crimes were recorded by police. That's up slightly from the first six months of last year, but down from more than 208,000 during the first six months of 1993. Some other key statistics from the first half of the year:

• The NYPD recorded 161 murders, down from 172 last year, but up from 2014's record-setting low of 150
• 435 shootings were recorded, down from 545 last year
• 7,329 robberies were recorded, compared to 7,627 last year
• 6,242 burglaries were recorded, down from 6,964 last year
• 2,930 cars were recorded stolen, down from 3,320 last year

At Monday's press conference, de Blasio and Bratton lauded the city's expansion of community policing, in which officers are assigned to specific geographic areas within precincts and distribute their department-issued email addresses and cell phone numbers to the public.

While admitting data on the program remains anecdotal, the officials said they've consistently heard the policing approach is improving police-community relations and producing more tips for cops to act on.

Robert Boyce, the city's chief of detectives, said the NYPD has dedicated more officers to gangs and drug networks. The result: 24 mass gang arrests so far this year netting 491 suspects, and 17 drug network take-downs that have taken 115 individuals into custody, along with 130 kilograms of heroin and 655 kilograms of cocaine (among many other drugs).

Rapes in the city have increased 7.3 percent compared to last year, the officials said, though they added that just 8 percent are committed by perpetrators unknown to the victim.

Additionally, the city's officers stopped and frisked fewer than 8,000 people during the first half of the year, a fraction of the hundreds of thousands that used to be searched annually, almost all of them men of color.

Bratton said that comparatively small number, coupled with with declining crime numbers, shows that the NYPD is "stopping the right people."

With additional reporting and photo by John V. Santore