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New York In The Lead For America’s Reducing Crime Rate

Good old New York, paving the way for the rest of America again…

PEW Charitable Trusts have compiled some interesting research on US crime rates, and it looks as if the New York State are on top again, or at the bottom should I say? It depends which way you look at it. The research was carried over the last 20 years based on data from the FBI and the Bureau Of Justice. In this article I want to look at why New York, a city so infamously known for its crime, is now showing the rest of America how it’s done.

New York

The crime rate reduction is largely due to the investment in crime prevention in New York City, a place once swarming with criminals and wrong-doing. These days, New York paints a prettier picture, with the imprisonment rate down 24% and general crime down 54%. This is all within the 20 year period. Pretty impressive, I think you’d agree.

Marty Golden, state senator was extremely happy with the outcome of the research. An ex cop himself, he can relate to the uphill battle that is crime prevention. He blames the previously poor crime rates on tough economic times, stating tough times, bring big crimes. The data agrees with Marty. In recessions and bad economic climates, crime does tend to rise.

New York was found to be the third safest ‘large’ state in America, losing only to Idaho and North Dakota. Between 1999 and 2012 New York’s prison population dropped by 20,000, from more than 70,000 to just over 50,000. This reduction saves the state 162 million dollars a year!

The imprisonment rate went up elsewhere in the US between 1990 and 2007, but it actually declined massively in New York, by as much as 27%. This stat alone goes to show that New York really is doing wonders in crime prevention.

Now, we wouldn’t be the site we are today without having our own opinions on this research. We’re not the kind to blindly accept facts and figures. Do these stats mean that New York simply had a hell of a lot of room for improvement? It could be that the other states were very much as good as they can be in the period that the research has been taken out.

We also need to look at what data is being examined. The research is looking at imprisonment rate as well. In recent years there have been many services available to criminals to keep them out of prison. Whether you need Bail Bonds in Birmingham, AL or an attorney in Los Angeles – it seems wherever you are in the US, there is increasing aid for criminals. This could have affected the research figures too.

It must be said though, overall New York can now be considered a safe state to live and visit. Your favourite superheroes and villains may have fought it out against the sinister sky scraper horizon but as the data has now proven, crime in New York, isn’t what it used to be.

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