NEW YORK (NewsNation) — This weekend, New York City Mayor Eric Adams has ordered all of the city’s police department commanders to meet him at police headquarters. Each commander will have to present three plans to get crime under control in their area of the city.
New York City is far from alone in this mission, as police departments across the country are looking for ways to slow down crime. Coast to coast, police are trying to get a handle on a wave of crime and gun violence sweeping the nation.
Using the most recent data available, a new report from Johns Hopkins revealed gun-related deaths increased by 15 percent in 2020 to more than 45,000, the highest number ever recorded by the CDC.
In Virginia, Richmond police are saying a surge of property crime has led to stolen guns being used in other crimes. Also in Virginia, citizens in Petersburg are still reeling from a night of violence that left five wounded in less than 24 hours.
In New York City, while the murder rate is down 13 percent from last year, the violent crime rate is up 42 percent, and crime on public transit is up a staggering 65 percent so far this year. Adams is now asking the public to send him photos and videos of cops scrolling on their cellphones rather than patrolling subway platforms and streets. “You are going to see a visible difference in policing in the next couple of weeks to get those officers who are not doing their job to join those officers who are doing their job,” he said.
In the nation’s capital, D.C. Metro Police report that violent crime is up 25 percent. The department plans a massive show of force with officers in uniform and plain clothes, hoping the large show of force will discourage criminal activity.
According to the National Incident-Based Reporting System, over 538,000 violent crime incidents were reported by police in 2020. Those numbers continued to surge last year in such disparate places as Little Rock, Arkansas, San Diego, California and Portland, Oregon.
In Philadelphia, where violent crimes are also up, the police commissioner says they’re doing everything they can to get the problem under control. One major issue they’re having is a simple lack of manpower. Recruitment is down 10 percent, and many officers retired after the pandemic.
In Los Angeles, the police department is receiving a road map to combat the violence, with the Department of Justice announcing creation of the Law Enforcement Knowledge Lab, a one-stop shop for police departments looking to implement reforms and overhaul policing.