Police Commissioner Keechant Sewell and Chief of Transit Jason Wilcox lately rode the 6 practice one cease.
ABC 7
New York’s subway killings have reached a horrible, 25-year excessive, with the variety of killings previously two years eclipsing the whole for the earlier 11. That makes it an existential risk not simply to the MTA, however to your entire metropolis.
As Nicole Gelinas factors out, “Public security is the #1 foundation for a public-transit system and thus for a dense metropolis. The hot button is ‘public.’ You might be using with strangers. You need to be certain they received’t stab you.”
In different phrases, and not using a subway, there is no such thing as a New York. And with out an finish to the killing, there quickly will likely be no subway.
Queens Councilwoman Tiffany Cabán’s insistence that such violence is “a one-in-a-million occasion” is all too typical of how lefty pols are in full denial mode. They don’t wish to admit the disaster as a result of they wish to keep on the ever-softer-on-crime “reform” drive that’s behind it. (Simply as with the wider progressive effort to faux away the nationwide crime rise.)
Seven murders up to now this yr. Eight final yr. Six in 2020.Earlier than 2019, that grim quantity was by no means larger than two. That’s a rise at a scale and pace not seen in any different class of violence throughout town.
How rather more proof do the pols want that criminal-justice “reform” (from winking at fare-beating to the no-bail legislation and past) is a catastrophe?
Extra, these numbers come amid critically decreased ridership — all the way down to 81 million monthly from the pre-pandemic 142 million. So each trip is considerably extra harmful for each rider, though total subway crime is down barely from 2019:Straphangers are greater than 53% extra prone to be victims in 2022 than in 2019.
The latest spate of murders on trains and in stations, together with the totally preventable loss of life of Tommy Baileyat the fingers of an alleged killer who was let free after a non-fatal subway stabbing final yr, reveal the total human value of New York’s disastrous insurance policies.
Mayor Eric Adams is doing his stage finest to combat the dangerous metropolis pattern on crime: He’s managed to drive the general homicide charge down greater than 14% this yr.
However his NYPD has made just a few main missteps on the problem, together with a fumbled rollout of a subway security push in addition to Tuesday’s weird one-stop system “tour” by NYPD Commissioner Keechant Sewell and Transit Chief Jason Wilcox.
And with out motion from Albany, it’s a near-impossible effort.
As we’ve written, Gov. Kathy Hochul owns Tommy Bailey’s homicide and numerous others. She made just a few meaningless tweaks to the catch-and-release guidelines driving crime and now pretends all is nicely whereas citing cherry-picked stats and punting the potential for any additional adjustments till after November’s election.
Plus, rising ridership itself deters crime, so Hochul’s inaction feeds a vicious cycle: Extra crime means fewer riders, which suggests extra crime; rinse and repeat.
Town’s future is at dire danger till our crime-enabling leaders get up and face the fact each straphanger is aware of all too nicely — or the voters change them.
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