NEW YORK—NYPD crime statistics show the New York City murder rate spiked 8.3 percent since last year, while rape rose 5.8 percent. Additionally, misdemeanor sex crimes skyrocketed a whopping 18 percent.
The numbers surfaced as the city mourns its fourth officer killed in the line duty this year. F.B.I. Director James Comey, said on Friday that the extra scrutiny and disparagement of police officers following incidents between law enforcement and officers are more hesitant.
“I don’t know whether that explains it entirely, but I do have a strong sense that some part of the explanation is a chill wind that has blown through American law enforcement over the last year,” Mr. Comey said during remarks at the University of Chicago Law School.
Some are concerned the city is creeping back to the “bad old days” when New York cops were targeted on a routine basis. New York Mayor Bill de Blasio, a target of blame for the crime rise, was recently criticized for not attending a second ceremony honoring slain NYPD Patrolman Phillip Cardillo. Cardillo was murdered during a racially charged incident 43 years ago inside a Harlem mosque.
The Mayor’s office sent a statement in his absence: “The Mayor is grateful to Patrolman Phillip Cardillo and his family for giving the ultimate sacrifice to New York City in his efforts to protect our city’s residents. The Mayor has also been honored to attend street renamings for officers who have died in the line of duty during his administration.”
The April 1972 incident, which involved Nation of Islam members, led to police allowing 16 suspects flee the scene of the crime. No one was ever charged in Cardillo’s death and then New York Mayor John Lindsey refused to attend Cardillo’s funeral.