Tuesday, January 04, 2005
Crime continues to fall in New York City.
I remember when they said it couldn't be done.
Murder
1990: 2,245
2003: 596
2004: 558
Rape
1990: 3,126
2003: 1,946
2004: 1,740
Robbery
1990: 100,280
2003: 25,887
2004: 23,669
Auto Theft
1990: 147,123
2003: 26,343
2004: 19,984
data via NY Sun
To see how much more crime has been reduced in NYC than nationally, go to the NYPD web site and click on "crime statistics". Of course, the plunge in the NYC rate accounts for a significant portion of the drop in the national rate, so the real difference is even larger than that.
And contrary to the situation in the rest of the U.S., the prison population in New York City and State is declining instead of rising, as noted previously. New York is now actually selling off excess prison space. There seem to be some lessons on display in New York about effective law enforcement that many other parts of the country have been reluctant to note, for some reason.
As a good news bonus, fewer people were killed in fires in NYC during 2004 than in any year since 1919.
"New York City, it's not Kansas -- Kansas is more dangerous."
