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Major crime in New York City dipped 5.6% final month in comparison with February 2022 — and other people already really feel safer partly as a result of they see extra pleasant cops who inform them, “Good morning,” the NYPD’s prime cop mentioned Friday.
“We began an initiative the place officers are extra participating with the general public, to simply say, ‘Good morning,’ in case you see somebody to simply allow them to know that we’re there,” Commissioner Keechant Sewell advised a small group of invited reporters Friday afternoon.
Sewell credit the pleasant cop initiative — a minimum of partly — with serving to “the general feeling within the metropolis… that it’s getting higher.”
The NYPD reported a 5.6% dip in main crime final month in comparison with February 2022 — pushed by a double-digit share lower in theft, housebreaking and grand larceny.
Last month noticed 1,155 robberies and 1,040 burglaries down from 1,290 and 1,224 over the identical time final 12 months, respectively, based on NYPD knowledge.
Shootings have been additionally down practically 15%, to 64 from 75.
There have been additionally practically 300 fewer grand larcenies with 3,539 reported final month in comparison with 3,815 a 12 months in the past. That month there have been solely 45 shootings as properly.
February additionally recorded 10 fewer murders.
The complete tally of 8,785, although, nonetheless stays up greater than 15% from February 2020 — the final full month earlier than the pandemic descended on NYC.
But Sewell mentioned she believed the division was heading in the right direction.
“I feel there’s a marked distinction from the place we have been this time final,” the highest cop mentioned.
“I used to be mentioning to somebody earlier at this time that while you go across the metropolis now you see so many extra folks out and about so many individuals within the eating places, so many individuals strolling the streets. It undoubtedly feels completely different. They inform us it feels completely different.”
She additionally famous that subway crime was down a bit extra, 169 v. 186 or a 9% lower — though folks might have been having a tough time discovering a subway police station to report the crime.
Sewell advised reporters she even walked proper previous one underground Transit District headquarters someday as a result of she didn’t acknowledge it with a “tremendous utilitarian” bike rack outdoors.
“So we ordered these covers for the bike racks that truly announce that it is a police station so folks can see it’s a bit extra user-friendly,” she mentioned.
Sewell said in a tweet Friday afternoon that an uptick in officers all through town’s subway system, signage and prepare conductors asserting the presence of cops is “guaranteeing commuters know their NYPD officers are there for them.”
