NYC Murders Hit 352 Over Past Year, New Mayor’s Report Says

NEW YORK CITY — A surge in murders claimed 352 lives in New York City over the past year as the coronavirus pandemic slowed much else to a crawl, a newly-released report confirms.

The crime statistics are buried within the Mayor’s Management Report for Fiscal 2020, an annual report card on city services dropped Thursday.

Mayor Bill de Blasio, in a release, touted nothing but city agencies’ “key improvements” between the July 1, 2019 to June 30 span covered by the report. Traffic crashes and fatalities dipped, as did felony crimes in schools, water main breaks and numerous other metrics.

And many other services ticked up in positive directions, such as Minority and Women-owned Business Enterprises certifications and contracts.

“This data tells the story of how the City has delivered, despite a year unlike any other,” de Blasio said in a statement. “As trust in government becomes more important than ever, we’re proud to maintain our commitment to open access and transparency.”

But de Blasio’s release left out mention of murders, robberies and gang motivated incidents that increased over the past year, and have fueled concerns over a destructive crime surge.

Murders rose to 352 from 278 the previous year. Robberies counted 13,438 this year compared to 12,556 last year. Gang motivated incidents hit 750, up from 498 the year before, according to the data.

And another notable measure also increased during the violent crime surge — NYPD response times.

Police on average took a whole minute longer last year to respond to all crimes, including “critical” incidents, according to the data.

NYPD and city officials have previously denied an intentional “slowdown” amid police reforms, a budget cut and protests over brutality.

The full report can be read here.