Mayor de Blasio and NYPD Commissioner O’Neill will host a press conference to discuss crime statistics

Chief Ben Tucker NYPD, Mayor Bill de Blasio, NYPD Commissioner James O'Neil, and Chief of Crime Strategy Dermot Shea.

  Mayor Bill de Blasio and Police Commissioner James O'Neil brought the brass from One Police Plaza where this type of press conference is normally held to discuss crime statistics to the Justice Sonya Sotomayor Community Center in the 43rd precinct covering the Soundview section of the Bronx. 
   Year-to-date the 4-3 is down more than 22 percent in index crime – 151 versus 194. Grand larcenies dropped by 30 percent and robberies dropped by nearly 50 percent – 30 versus 55.
   Mayor de Blasio said it is a particular pleasure to be here in the 4-3 Precinct. This is a precinct that is doing amazing work. The men and women of this precinct are definitely a winning team and they’re proving all the time how much can be achieved. I want to give a special thanks to Inspector Pichardo who is clearly a rising star in this department for all he has done.

And there is – look, obviously, a bittersweet reality as we’re here. We’re proud of what the men and women of this precinct have achieved but we also know the sense of loss that they feel. And it was only three months ago that we lost Sergeant Tuozzolo, and the whole city grieved. But no one grieved more than his family and no one grieved more than the men and women he served with in the 4-3.

So, we’re going to keep Sergeant Tuozzolo in our hearts, in our prayers. We’re also going to remember his wife, Lisa, his two young children – his young sons, Austin and Joseph. Let’s keep them in our thoughts and prayers always.it is a particular pleasure to be here in the 4-3 Precinct. This is a precinct that is doing amazing work. The men and women of this precinct are definitely a winning team and they’re proving all the time how much can be achieved. I want to give a special thanks to Inspector Pichardo who is clearly a rising star in this department for all he has done.

 And January of 2017 had the lowest number of homicides and the lowest number of shootings in the modern era in New York City. So – a great month of January for any January in our recorded history the mayor added.

  The mayor and police commissioner went over the COM STAT report which gave the lowest crime index for the month of January in 2017 since the statistics have been recorded. 
  Homicides – we recorded 20 homicides in January. That’s down two from 22. That 20, as the Mayor alluded to, is the lowest January that we have ever recorded going back a minimum into the 1960s.

Shooting incidents – down 1.7 percent in January. Last January we hit the modern mark with 59 shooting incidents. We came in with 58 this January.

Talking about momentum again – nine of the last 13 months we’ve had a reduction in shooting incidents. Nine of the last 13.

Three months in a row we’ve had a reduction in shooting incidents in New York City. We have now, when you look at New York City as a whole, we now have 24-hour periods where we do not record a shooting incident in New York City. That kind of thinking was impossible in the not too distant past.

This is the new normal. We want to build on it and we feel that we will build on it but there’s still plenty of work to do.

Stabbings and slashings for January – down 7.2 percent.

Robberies – down 7.5 percent. Lowest January robbery number we’ve seen.

Felony assaults in New York City – down 5.4 percent.

Burglaries tied the lowest mark set last year.

Transit crime – down 1.4 percent.

And housing crime – not to be outdone – down 1.9 percent.

Clearly, a wide breath of crime across New York City – property and violent crime, down.

But there is, I alluded to, there is still work to do – three categories we saw increases in January.

Rape was up 8.9 percent.

Grand larceny, specifically, credit card related skimming and forging of checks – those two drove grand larcenies. And grand larceny was up for the month of January 4.7 percent.

And lastly, rounding out the crime totals – stolen vehicles which we have seen drop to unprecedented lows saw an increase of ten cars for January. So, that’s 480 versus 470 – a two percent increase.

Both congratulated the fine work of the NYPD, and then took questions. 

  Questions included the arrest of a suspect in the high profile Queens rape and killing, costs for security and other questions regarding to Trump Towers and the president, but there were no local issues except for the mayor commenting on the killing of a police sergeant a few months ago in the 43rd precinct. That may have been one of the reasons this press conference was held in the 43rd precinct.

Above - Chief Boyce (far right) is called upon to discuss the rape/slaying three months ago in Queens where a suspect has been arrested, but would not say anything further due to an ongoing investigation. 

Below - Mayor Bill de Blasio in answering a question if crime can go any lower in NYC, gives a definite yes answer.