The continuing decline in crime during Mayor Michael Bloomberg’s term in office ranks first among the accomplishments listed on his campaign Web site: “2004 was the third year in a row with fewer than 600 homicides and brought the murder rate to its lowest level since 1963. According to FBI statistics, NYC is America's Safest Big City.”
There is some evidence, though, that New Yorkers remain concerned about different kinds of public safety, especially the threat of terrorism. In a recent poll, done shortly after the July 7th terrorist attacks in London, half of the registered New York City voters surveyed said they believed the city was not adequately prepared for another terrorist attack. The poll was a mixed bag for Bloomberg’s Democratic challengers, however: 62 percent of those surveyed nevertheless approved of the way Bloomberg has handled terrorism.
The major candidates may focus on security when discussing public safety, but there are other issues as well. They offer different ideas about how to make New York a safer city, and each of them has put forth at least a few details about what changes might take place should they be elected.
Anti-terrorism efforts are handled by the New York Police Department. To be sure, the police have had their critics. An official from the New York Fire Department, Chief of Department Peter Hayden, spoke before the City Council in May against giving the police primary authority when handling incidents involving hazardous materials; the standard protocol in most cities is to have the fire department in charge. And the police department has also at times angered the F.B.I. and other federal officials with its aggressiveness.
But there has not been another terrorist attack in New York since 9/11, and while the reasons may not be clear, some say good police work may be a major factor. The department, under Commissioner Ray Kelly, has reportedly worked to build up a strong network of informants, as well as build closer links with federal intelligence.
This has come at a steep price tag, however; the police reportedly have been spending about $200 million a year on anti-terrorism initiatives. Neither Bloomberg nor any federal legislators representing New York have had much luck wrangling substantially more federal funds for general anti-terrorism security efforts, though Bloomberg did raise the issue in a speech at the Republican National Convention last year.
Bloomberg’s opponents say he hasn’t been doing enough. They particularly criticize the Metropolitan Transportation Authority for spending only $30 million out of $600 million earmarked for security improvements in the subways, and say the mayor bears some responsibility for that lapse.
City Council Speaker Gifford Miller has proposed creating a new Office of Homeland Security to make sure the MTA and other organizations, like hospitals, are on the same page when making plans against terrorism. He wants improved communications for first responders.
Former Bronx Borough President Fernando Ferrer has called for the creation of a new Advisory Council on Best Practices to review security ideas, as well as a renewed focus on security in subways, including a greater police presence, better training for MTA employees and improved communications technology. He also called for better leadership in securing federal money.
Congressman Anthony Weiner also has talked about the need for more federal money, and suggested the federal Transportation Security Agency should screen passengers entering New York by train or boat. Weiner also says that the federal government should pay for the 2,000 intelligence officers currently part of the police budget.
C. Virginia Fields, the Manhattan borough president, said that she also wants to revamp subway security, with more security cameras and announcements made in different languages.
The Democratic candidates share a desire to hire more police officers. Miller wants 1,000 more officers, Ferrer 1,900, Fields 2,000 and Weiner 3,000.
The police department has decreased from about 41,000 in 2001 to 37,000. A protracted labor dispute between the city and the largest police union was finally resolved in June, with state arbitrators awarding the police a substantial raise, although starting salaries were reduced to $25,100 for the first six months on the job (after six months, salary is increased to $32,700 for the next 18 months).
Acrimony remains between the city and the police union, with Bloomberg blaming the union for the reduction in starting pay. Kelly said the low salary will make it harder to recruit, although that remains to be seen.
Are more officers a luxury or a necessity? Even as the department has shrunk, the murder rate has reached historically low levels, and Operation Impact, which floods high-crime areas with officers, continues to be trumpeted as a success by Bloomberg and the police department.
Beyond the crime statistics, though, there remain causes for concern. A July Newsday article reported how some police felt that a lack of resources and an unwillingness by the department to pay overtime was leading to fewer murder cases being solved.
With low morale can come police misconduct, an issue that never seems far from the headlines. The March indictment of two former police detectives on murder charges for allegedly participating in mob hits in the early 1990s is, if true, an extreme example of how the department has historically struggled to police itself.
The outside agencies assigned to check into corruption charges are struggling for support. The Commission to Combat Police Corruption in April weathered the resignation of its chairman, Mark Pomerantz, who became frustrated with the committee’s lack of power to access police records. Early in his administration Bloomberg completely ignored the commission before appointing Pomerantz, but in June Bloomberg did appoint a new chair, Michael F. Armstrong, a former Queens District Attorney who also served as chief counsel to the Knapp Commission in the 1970s.
The Civilian Complaint Review Board continues to struggle to handle the increase in complaints about police misconduct. At a recent meeting, officials noted that complaints increased by six percent so far this year compared to the previous year, but that fewer were being substantiated— nine percent so far compared to 16 percent in all of 2004. Officials called it good news that they received $1 million in funding, but worried that they did not receive a long-term commitment, noting that they have to continue to lobby the city for more money.
Fernando Ferrer helped found the Civilian Complaint Review Board. In the past he has spoken about the importance of good relations between the police and the community.
In the past, Virginia Fields has been critical of so-called no-knock warrants, setting up a hotline for people to call to complain after such a raid led to the death of a Harlem woman, Alberta Spruill, in 2003.
Two high-profile, white-on-black attacks that have been characterized as bias attacks occurred this summer in Queens and Brooklyn, raising the public’s perception of hate crimes. Police statistics suggest, however, that, overall, bias crimes involving physical attacks have decreased by nearly fifty percent since 2000.
Fields has called for greater attention to hate crimes, as well as a focus on domestic violence issues, both by police and the courts Anthony Weiner also called for more attention to hate crimes.
Weiner also wants a greater focus on quality-of-life crimes such as graffiti. He also wants to expand the use of DNA matching technology. The law requiring certain violent felons to provide a DNA sample went in effect in 1994. Weiner wants to order former convicts who completed their sentence before 1994 to also give a DNA sample.
Gifford Miller has called for more money to go to District Attorney’s offices, as well as the creation of more Community Courts, which handle less serious crimes. Miller also wants to include crimes committed in city parks in the precinct-by-precinct CompStat crime tracking system.
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CRIME
-Anti-Terror Plan?
-Other Crime Priorities?
-More police?
Crime is down in New York City; the murder rate is the lowest since 1963. Yet the challenge of keeping New Yorkers safe remains a critical issue.
After the terrorist attacks of September 11, 2001, terrorism became the number one priority for the New York Police Department. The recent subway bombings in Madrid and London have also raised concerns about the safety of the city's transportation system.
In the last four years, the size of police force has been reduced by about 3,800 officers to 34,824, but overtime expenses cost the city more than $200 million a year.
Fernando Ferrer has outlined a plan to try to make the transportation system safer from terrorism. Ferrer wants to integrate transit employees into security planning. He promises to put more security cameras in subways and stations, set up an Advisory Council for Best Security Practices, and build better coalitions with officials in Washington DC.
"Random bag searches aren't enough on their own," said Ferrer. "We need agencies to coordinate with each other, instead of developing their own plans and policies."
As part of his crime plan, Ferrer proposes hiring 1,900 new police officers. He would hire 1,000 local officers and add 900 more from the federally funded Community Oriented Policing Services (COPS) program. Ferrer also points toward his efforts to help create the Civilian Complaint Review Board while in the New York City Council.
To fight terrorism, C. Virginia Fields proposes expanding the Operation Atlas program, the police department's anti-terrorism initiative. She also wants to run public service announcements on television and radio to instruct New Yorkers on how to prepare better for emergencies. (Read Fields' security plan)
She promises to hire 2,000 additional police officers to patrol "so-called 'soft targets' such as the subways, department stores or movie theaters."
To improve subway security, Fields calls for more security cameras, subway announcements in multiple languages, and cell phone service in tunnels and stations. "Pulling police officers from their regular duty to perform anti-terrorism activities - such as searching bags in the subways - is not the most effective way to combat terrorism," said Fields.
Fields also promises to work to reform the court system so that domestic violence cases are addressed in a more timely manner. She says she will launch new efforts to prevent hate crimes. She also pledges to continue efforts to eliminate police misconduct by demanding changes in police training and recommendations regarding the approvals and use of no-knock warrants.
(Read more on her policing plan)
To address terrorism concerns, Gifford Miller proposes creating a position of "Director of Homeland Security for the City of New York" to implement the 9/11 Commission's recommendations. The Homeland Security chief would coordinate emergency preparedness and subway security.
"It's wrong for the mayor to leave safety of our subways and buses to a bunch of bureaucrats in the MTA who literally can't make the trains run on time as it is right now," said Miller.
Miller promises to install 911 phones and improve emergency communication systems in stations and tunnels. Miller also plans to organize what he calls "Citizen Corps," which will recruit 50,000 emergency volunteers. (Read Miller's crime platform)
Miller would hire 1,000 new police officers to focus on quality-of-life crimes, freeing up senior officers for anti-terrorism duties.
To fight crime across the city, Miller advocates extending CompStat to include parks and hiring more parks enforcement patrol officers. He also promises to renegotiate for higher starting salaries for police officers and to put a community court in every borough and increase funding for District Attorney's offices.
Anthony Weiner says the city must do more to secure its ports. He promises to establish federal screenings of passengers traveling into New York on boats and trains, as well as for those visiting high-profile landmarks, such as the Empire State Building.
He also promises to work to have cell phone service in transit systems and will mandate that subway platforms are equipped with necessary technology by the year 2010.
Weiner proposes hiring 3,000 additional police officers to restore the size of the department to pre 9/11 levels. Nine hundred of the additional police officers would come through the federally funded Community Oriented Policing Services (COPS) program.
In addition, Weiner promises to work to change current laws in order to require all ex-convicts to supply DNA samples. He advocates the use of DNA samples for criminals in a greater range of crimes. He wants to ensure that rape kits are tested within 30 days and advocates reversing laws that prevent the city from prosecuting sexual offenders for crimes that they have committed more than five years before they were identified.
Weiner also promises to focus on quality-of-life crimes. He advocates punishing those who vandalize property with graffiti with the responsibility of cleaning up their own mess. He also promises to conduct greater investigations into hate crimes. (Read Weiner's crime platform)
In response to the terrorist attacks of September 11, 2001, Michael Bloomberg launched Operation Impact, the New York Police Department's anti-terrorism unit that devotes more than 1,000 officers to the protection of the city.
"We can't rest - not for a minute - nor can we stop in our intelligence, counter-terrorism, and response capabilities," said Bloomberg.
In addition, Bloomberg points to the overall decrease in crime in the city. Crime is down 20 percent citywide. The city's murder rate is the lowest since 1963.
Bloomberg has also focused efforts on reducing "quality of life" crimes. He has created special task forces to deal with noise, graffiti, and minor crimes.
Crime has decreased even as Bloomberg has reduced the size of the police force. In 2001, there were 38,630 full time cops working for the New York Police Department. Today, that number has dropped to 34,824.
(Read Bloomberg's crime platform)
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The first juvenile delinquents in New York Citygo back to 1797; these were the first young New Yorkers, in any case, who were thrown in (the newly built) jail.
Minors are still being incarcerated in New York. Every year, some 2,200 of them throughout the state are released back into the community. Within three years, 75 percent of these young people are rearrested.
It was this depressing statistic that inspired 16 teenagers to spend the better part of the year studying the problem of what is bureaucratically referred to as “juvenile reentry,” interviewing officials, experts, young people and their families to try to figure out what could be done.
The result was “Stop The Revolving Door: Giving Communities and Youth The Tools To Overcome Recidivism” (full 60-page report here in pdf format; or the four-page executive summary, also in pdf format.) Among the recommendations in their report, released earlier this year, were to create Connection Centers (transitional facilities) and Welcome Centers (places where young people could go “to get reliable information about services and opportunities” such as job training and peer support groups.) They suggested that the New York State Office of Children and Family Services institute a uniform system to track the warning signs – truancy, etc. – to intervene before the behavior becomes bad enough to require arrest.
This was the first project of the Youth Justice Board, a program launched by the Center for Court Innovation that gathers a group of high school students from around the city to spend a year studying a single criminal justice or public safety issue.
For the second year, the new members of the Youth Justice Board are studying school security.
There probably always has been tension between order and liberty in the hallways of New York public schools. But it is not just students who resent the presence of a school security force composed of armed police officers even as statistics suggest a decrease in crime in schools with a strong police presence.
Earlier this year, when an officer went inside a classroom at Bronx Guild High School to arrest a student, it was the school’s principal, Michael Soguero, who wound up arrested, for allegedly assaulting that officer.
Partly in response to that incident, Bronx Councilmember Annabel Palma sponsored some community meetings at which students complained of school security officers – commonly called SSO’s or SSA’s – routinely harassing students.
As a result, in May, Palma decided to set up a hotline for students in her district to call in and complain if they have a problem with how they have been treated by school security. (Calling (718)589-9166 will get a message machine, not a live person; the number also currently doubles as a place to lodge complaints about a turkey plant said to be a big polluter.) The council member’s office has been able to follow up on 12 complaints phoned into the hotline, ranging from verbal abuse to violence.
The hotline was one of the topics of a freewheeling discussion at a recent meeting of the Youth Justice Board, where 15-year-old Jordan Rivera, a student at Mount St. Michael Academy in the Bronx, wondered whether any student would really call.
The discussion turned to an interview some of the Youth Justice Board members had done with Emily Merrill, chief of staff for Councilmember Eva Moskowitz, about the status of the proposed city legislation on bullying. This in turn led to a debate over how schools should handle students with a habit for getting into fights and not following school rules.
“It’s like cancer, you have one thing and then it spreads,” said 17-year-old Victoria Richardson, a student at Mother Cabrini High School.
George Espinal, a graduated senior at Washington-Irving High School, advocated a tough-minded approach to problem students.
Other students talked about alternative high schools, so-called “second-chance schools”, where students with behavior problems can end up.
Rivera said he had friends who were sent to second-chance schools. “It was like nobody paid them any mind there, and they was like, â€No one cares for my education, why should I?’” Rivera said.
Reynold Martin, a student at the Academy of Urban Planning, wondered about the root of the students’ behavior. “What if the reason they were acting bad was because they weren’t getting an education?
“You can influence somebody positively,” said Martin, and then spontaneously came up with an idea: “Why can’t they try putting one so-called problem student in a class of honor students…see how their grades are…I think they’d like it.”
Kids!/ I don't know what's wrong with these kids today!/Kids!/ Who can understand anything they say?/…Why can't they be like we were,/Perfect in every way?/ What's the matter with kids today?”
Paul Lynde sang these lyrics in Bye Bye Birdie, on Broadway in 1960, and it’s the tune of many adults then and now.
But over the past decade, there has been a trend toward the creation of youth civic groups looking to solve the problems of youth – and of government interest in hearing what they have to say, according to Wendy Wheeler, president of the Innovation Center for Community and Youth Development, a national organization that helps youth advocacy groups get started.
Wheeler said that there have been cases where policies advocated by youth wound up being largely adopted wholesale, such as the guidelines for foster care residents proposed by the Young Women’s Project in Washington, D.C.
This year, Dory Hack, who is overseeing the Youth Justice Board, said the group will be making its recommendations on school security in October to a host of city officials. Organizers understand that the recommendations the group makes might not directly lead to policy changes. But Tabetha Cody Ritter, a ninth-grader at ACORN High School for Social Justice in Brooklyn, said that what she has learned in the meetings has sparked discussions among her friends who aren’t in the program.
“They’re interested,” she said, when she explains to them some of the details of school safety policy. If other students are having similar experiences, then the program may have a far-reaching impact after all.
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