The latest information released by the New York City Police Department paints a grim picture of the continued rise in shootings and deadly crime in 2020.
Data provided by the department for July shows a 177 percent increase in shootings from the same month in 2019. That's a total of 244 shootings up from 88 the year before.
For the first seven months of the year, that spike dips slightly. There have been 772 recorded shootings, the NYPD says, a 72 percent increase from the 450 recorded between January and July of 2019.
The number of people murdered in July rose 59 percent, from 34 deaths last year to 54 in 2020. That number includes two teenagers shot at a Brooklyn park, a Bronx father shot walking his 6-year-old daughter, and a 1-year-old shot in Bed-Stuy.
“This is going to be a situation I think that’s going to take some time to turn around and it's going to take all of us working together," NYPD Commissioner Dermot Shea said in an interview on NY1 in late July.
“I'm confident it's going to turn around ... but it’s not going to be a short-term fix, we have some work ahead of us."
Faced with an unprecedented surge in shootings across the five boroughs, the NYPD launched the End Gun Violence plan, which targets high-crime areas.
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Under the plan, officers would be moved away from big target areas that are frequented by tourists. The number of officers needed in those areas has been greatly reduced due to the COVID-19 pandemic that has hampered tourism of any kind in the city.
Other crimes in the city increased as well, the data shows. Burglaries were up 31 percent in July, as well as auto thefts, which rose 53 percent. The total number of recorded auto thefts for the month nearly hit 900.
One of the reported crimes that dropped from last year was rape. According to the NYPD, 10 fewer rapes were reported to the department in 2020. The department says rape continues to go underreported. Victims of sexual assault can report to the NYPD by calling 212-267-7273 or reach the National Sexual Assault Hotline at 1-800-656-4673.
