New York Homicide Rate Falls In 2014, Mayor Bill De Blasio Says

New York City Mayor Bill de Blasio and Police Commissioner Bill Bratton revealed in a press conference Monday that in 2014, the city had seen the fewest murders, robberies and burglaries in a decade. De Blasio said the city experienced the “most extraordinary year of all” in 2014 when it came to crime prevention.

Major crime, overall, was down 4.6 percent compared with 2013. The city hasn’t seen numbers like that since 2003. In the subway, there were only two deaths in 2014, which means the crime rate dropped 15 percent from the previous year. That’s “outstanding success in our subway system,” de Blasio said.

The mayor added 2,600 fewer people were robbed in 2014: “That's an extraordinary impact on people's lives, also setting a record.”

De Blasio gave credit to Commissioner Bratton: “I was certain, when I chose him as our commissioner, that he would lead us to places we had never been before -- better places -- and he has fulfilled that promise so clearly.”

Despite many members of the NYPD turning their backs on de Blasio at the funerals of Officers Rafael Ramos and Wenjian Liu Ramos, who were murdered in an act of revenge for the deaths of Eric Garner and Michael Brown, the mayor thanked police officers. “… The men and women of the NYPD have done an absolutely extraordinary job,” de Blasio said. “This is the world’s greatest police department. There’s no doubt about it. I’ve said it many times. I never have any fear or contradiction when I say that statement.”

The nod to the NYPD comes after many of its officers have shown public disapproval of the mayor. The men and women in blue have turned their backs on him multiple times after de Blasio didn’t defend them when New York residents were outraged over Garner’s death and blamed the NYPD. They have also been upset about how de Blasio told his biracial son to watch himself around police officers.

In his statement, de Blasio spoke about Ramos and Liu: “Both were extraordinarily devoted to the communities they came from -- devoted to their families, their neighborhoods.” He added: “They wanted that closeness to deepen, and that’s what we’re dedicated to. And all this is based on the notion that when you bring police and community closer together, it is not only an act of fairness, it’s an act of safety for all.” But de Blasio made sure to bring things back to statistics: “… You can see it in the numbers that will be laid out today.”

The mayor pledged to make New York even safer in 2015. “I see a New York where citizens and police officers are partners in the endeavor of making us safer -- respectful partners working together for the betterment of our neighborhoods.”

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