Reporting by Phil O'Brien, Dashiell Allen and Katie Savage
Crime and quality of life issues are always hot topics in New York City, and last week we asked Hell's Kitchen residents how they felt about life on the streets. More than 40% of respondents said they had personally experienced a crime in the past year. When asked about their level of confidence in crime-related statistics shared by city officials and politicians, only 13% of respondents expressed confidence in the numbers.
“Despite what the statistics show, it’s clear that many New Yorkers don’t feel safe, especially on the subway,” said local Congressman Eric Bottcher after we shared our findings. Told.
In our survey, 79% of respondents felt there was more crime than five years ago, and just over half said there was more crime than last year.
The NYPD reported a 24.7% decrease in mass shootings citywide from 2022 to 2023. Murder, rape, robbery, grand larceny and burglary all decreased last year compared to the previous 12 months, but grand theft of a motor vehicle and felony assault increased, according to police data.
According to NYPD crime index statistics, the crime rate decreased by 2.4% in the first three months of 2024 compared to 2023, with decreases seen in all major categories except for felony assault and robbery.
“What we're seeing on the streets and on the subways is emblematic of a mental health crisis, a substance abuse crisis and a decline in standards of behavior in public spaces,” CM Bottcher said. “Government at all levels has much work to do to ensure New Yorkers and their families can go about their daily lives safely and confidently.”
For our part, we accepted a reader's suggestion that W42ST continue reporting on serious crime and check out a regular 'police blotter' for other crimes. With this initiative, we hope to cut through the noise of social media triggers from Citizen, Facebook, and NextDoor and give you a calmer view of what's happening in your neighborhood.
We took the time to talk to local residents who experienced the crime, those officially affiliated with the NYPD, and night managers at dive bars who were more likely to be witnesses than anyone else, and compiled comments from our readers. .
investigation
Last week, 70 W42ST readers responded to our survey. The goal was to understand the experience and perception of crime in the neighborhood. Here's what we found:
- when Compare current crimes to crimes from 5 years agonearly 8 in 10 readers (79%) agree that there is more crime today.
- when Compare current crimes to crimes from a year agojust about half (52%) think not much has changed
- When asked how much they trust crime statistics shared by city officials and politicians, they said: Only 9 readers (13%) reported high confidence in the information received
Overall, about 4 in 10 respondents (42%) reported having personal experience with crime in the Hell's Kitchen area within the past year.
Reader's voice
“Squatters and drug addicts moved into my apartment. I witnessed a lot of fights and open drug use. Crime doesn't seem to be spiking in the neighborhood, but disorder has spiked. There seems to be a lot of garbage, mopeds driving the wrong way, delivery guys camped out on the sidewalks, empty and untended storefronts, weed and weed shops everywhere, and low-level commercial businesses.” —Caroline Ely.
“I think the spectacle of poverty, homelessness and drug use creates a lack of safety and discomfort, but I don't think it necessarily leads to an increase in crime. The real crime is not enough housing or social services. ” — Cinegra
“Thankfully, I don't have any personal experience. I have neighbors who have had their packages stolen from the lobby…and sometimes it's people who don't live in my building who are trying to get someone to buzz. [in] Throughout the night. ” – Anonymous
“I feel like I always have to watch my back when I’m out and about.” — Jay G
“The deserted streets of 2020 were far more dangerous than any of today. The collective trauma of the pandemic is still present and today we simply ignore it. Meanwhile, we We lost a lot and left many people scrambling to survive. It happened very recently and we are still seeing the effects of it (inflation, poverty, health, mental health, community, homelessness). , increasing monopoly consolidation), but everyone seems to want to pretend that it wasn't actually a problem.'' — Greg
“I no longer feel it's important to 'see something, say something.' Police just shrug their shoulders at anything when you feel like you're in danger. ” — DJ
Delores Rubin — Midtown North District Community Council President
For the past three years, attendees at Midtown North District Community Council meetings have primarily reported quality of life concerns, including an increase in bicycle violations (including sidewalk riding), homeless encampments, and illegal smoking establishments. . Additionally, a number of concerns had previously been raised about shoplifting being regularly witnessed at local establishments such as pharmacies. This concern has not been on the table for the past 5-6 months. A decrease in complaints does not indicate a change in frequency, but rather that it is not the biggest concern for meeting attendees at this time.
Not all of these problems can be solved by the NYPD, but we keep hearing that more collaboration between agencies is needed to reduce the impact of these problems.
Meeting attendance has also dropped from around 50 or more people at the height of the pandemic to a steady attendance rate of around 30 people each month.
After all, while the survey results may be accurate for participants, they may not correlate with the sentiments of MTN District Council meeting attendees.
Peter Cecere — Business Owner, The Purple Tongue
The high top table had LED lights and two table lamps. I saw the door open. Then I saw a man come in and he took two lights and ran off. And I just followed him. I ran after him to 9th Avenue and headed north on 9th Avenue. And I caught him right outside the Westway Diner. There was a little conflict there.
I got the light back from him, but then I pulled out my cell phone and called 911 and he started running. I followed him down 44th Street towards his 8th Avenue and just followed him. I probably shouldn't have done it. But I instinctively felt violated at that point. And this is my job and you have no right to do this.
We have installed security cameras and alarm systems. What I'm thinking of doing is creating a vestibule at the front of the restaurant to provide another barrier in case someone comes in. I always tell customers sitting there not to leave their bags hanging on the back of their chairs. To enter the restaurant, the front door closes and you must enter through a second door.
Brian Weber — Midtown South District Community Council Chairman
The most common concerns raised at MTS District Community Council meetings concern drug use in public places and having to navigate around people engaged in drug activity. Sometimes it involves people who may be homeless, but I think most people are just concerned about the behavior they see on the sidewalk.
Brian recommends calling 911 if you witness drugs being used in public…
What's important about this call is that it forms a data point that will help city officials decide how to deploy resources. That's why I encourage people to report, but I also understand that it's difficult to always report everything you see.
I think the public is frustrated because they report something and expect it to be addressed immediately. And I'm not blaming it, but because they expect it to be addressed immediately. When it comes to drug activity, it's often not that simple.
Joe Sarabi — Rudy's Bar & Grill Night Manager
I don't feel like crime is getting worse right now. However, because the number of people is increasing, I think the number of criminal incidents will also increase. I feel like people are more aware of crime these days thanks to citizen apps, and when something happens they immediately report it to Facebook or Instagram. In the past, if something happened, people wouldn't hear about it.
I'm out here every day. I walk home at 5 a.m. down the street. But for me it's a little different. Because I know everyone there.When I returned home at night, I saw homeless people. [and] Drug addicts: I know them all. So I greet them on my way back.
Sarabi witnessed the cutting incident outside the Plaza Gourmet Deli (43rd Street, Ninth Avenue) early last week.
It was a jealous boyfriend incident. It wasn't like a guy starts slashing people hanging out in a deli.i helped [a woman] When she got her phone charged inside the deli, there was a new guy working there, which made her feel a little uncomfortable. She's like, well, okay, I'm going to go. And before I knew it, she was outside in the car charging her phone. Then her boyfriend showed up and was jealous that she was riding in a car with a man. And this is how the stabbing incident happened.
I came out and talked to him. But he's four feet away from me and he still has the knife. I kept telling him to put down the knife. I told him it was no use, she was just charging her phone. He still wouldn't let go of the knife, so I told him if he didn't let go of the knife, I'd go get it.
That's when he threw the knife away. He pulled out another knife and began stabbing the man's tires. So I had to physically pull him to the ground and take the knife from him.
In most cases, words are enough to stop the situation. Because I know one or both sides of the argument. I know people and people know me. You will see people from all walks of life greeting me, and I will greet them as well. You don't feel unsafe stepping into it. I feel completely safe.
Regarding the NYPD, Salibi said:
The problem is not them, but what happens after they arrest someone. Someone would be taken away and before I finished work for the night, I would see them back on the street. There is not enough support for the mentally ill.
Many have been left on the streets for years. They are tired of being on the streets, but there is nothing. They can't just walk in and say, “Hey, listen.” Well, I'm tired of being on the streets. I'm tired of stealing from stores like this.
