City murders down, shooting arrests up, NYPD and mayor says

In the face of continued street violence Thursday morning, NYPD Commissioner Dermot Shea said the department was making gains, citing a drop in July shootings.

Shea also predicted crime — while still plaguing some neighborhoods — would "plummet" in coming months from the high levels seen during the pandemic.

Speaking to reporters with Mayor Bill DeBlasio at a daily City Hall briefing, Shea said that policing tactics put in place earlier this year were getting results and contributed to reductions in homicides and shootings, as well as an explosion of gun seizures and arrests.

"Progress," was how Shea characterized July, a month in which crime statistics showed an almost 50% decrease in homicides and 35% reduction in shootings compared to the same period last year. He also noted that gun arrests were up 44% over last year, which recorded the highest number of such arrests in 25 years.

A key component for continued drops in violence, Shea said, would be faster processing of the open gun cases in the state court system along with stronger consequences for the violent predators. Despite recent declines, shootings are still up about 16% for the year.

"We now have over 5,100 open [gun] cases on individuals who tragically don’t listen, they resist all forms of help," explained Shea. "When we start to take those people and see those cases adjudicated, you are going to see crime and the violence in New York City plummet."

DeBlasio said there had been improvement in the speed of cases handled by the courts, which were hamstrung like other institutions during the COVID-19 pandemic, but not enough. The mayor said the system needed to be back to 100%.

"For months now, all judges and staff have been back in the courthouses so clearly, the Mayor and Police Commissioner don’t speak to each other on a regular basis, as they both should be cognizant that we are aware and engaged and have fully briefed their offices as to those concerns, and our initiatives regarding how they will addressed in the very short term," said Lucian Chalsen, a spokesman for the state Office of Court Administration.

Even as Shea and DeBlasio spoke, more violence was hitting the city Thursday. Earlier in the day police said two male passengers, one age 60 and the other 23, riding on a southbound Q8 bus at 148th Street and Jamaica Avenue, were struck by single bullets fired by a suspect on the street during an argument with another man. The suspect was captured by two nearby cops and a semiautomatic handgun was recovered, said police.

The two men in the bus were treated for their wounds. But the bus shooting was the second time since the weekend when innocent bystanders were injured. On Saturday, 10 people were wounded at an Astoria laundromat in what police described as a Trinitario gang shooting. Four suspects still remain at large.

By Anthony M. DeStefano

tony.destefano@newsday.comtonynewsday

Anthony M. DeStefano has been a reporter for Newsday since 1986 and covers law enforcement, criminal justice and legal affairs from its New York City offices.