NYC crime falls, but some residents say they don’t feel safer
Meanwhile, subway and transit crime is up by 1%.
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New York City recorded fewer shootings and murders through September, according to NYPD data, but some residents say the progress doesn’t match what they’re experiencing.
Mayor Zohran Mamdani and NYPD Commissioner Jessica Tisch announced at Tuesday’s crime briefing a 6.6% drop in major crime citywide compared with the first nine months of 2025.
Brooklyn saw a decline of about 7%. The Bronx had the biggest drop, at 11.9%.
A hammer attack Sunday night near 65th Street and 14th Avenue was still on neighbors’ minds.
Police said two men approached two 36-year-old men next to Burger King around 9 p.m. and hit both in the head with a hammer. Both were taken to Lutheran Medical Center in stable condition. No arrests had been made.
Asked whether the crime numbers matched what he was seeing, Dylan said, “I say, ‘Hell no, I don’t believe it. I don’t see it.’”
Freddy shared a similar concern.
“I feel it’s at the highest it’s ever been, honestly,” he said.
Their reactions reflect how they feel about safety. The NYPD’s data shows major crime falling in every borough, although some categories increased.
Citywide, police recorded 489 shooting incidents, 594 people shot and 203 murders from January through September.
Compared with the same months last year, shootings fell 11.6%, the number of people shot dropped 14.4% and murders declined 19.8%.
The NYPD said all three were the lowest recorded totals for the first nine months of a year.
Brooklyn also reached record lows for that period, with 159 shooting incidents, 201 people shot and 57 murders.
But confirmed hate crimes rose 12.9% citywide. Serious assaults increased 0.2%, while major crime in the transit system went up 0.9%. Reported rapes increased 3.7%; police said a quarter of those reports involved attacks from previous years and noted that the state’s expanded definition of rape affects comparisons.
“We know where the challenges remain, and we will be adjusting our strategies,” Tisch said.
The department credited gun recoveries, investigations of violent groups and officers assigned to areas where crime is concentrated. Police recovered 4,100 guns citywide through September, including 1,127 in Brooklyn, and carried out 25 gang-related takedowns.
Mamdani also credited violence interrupters and community teams working to prevent violence.
For Dylan, Sunday’s attack remains the immediate concern.
“Kind of crazy that that happened the other night with the hammer and all that,” he said. “I just hope it stops.”
