According to the FBI's Preliminary Crime Report for 2006, New York City's crime has dropped 5.3% from last year and is once again the safest big city. Based on the number of crimes per 100,000 people, NYC ranked 25th, out of the 25 largest cities; out of the 244 cities with populations of more than 100,000, NYC ranks 230th.
For crime statistics nerds, here are some interesting numbers: NYC experienced decreases (when measuring 2006 vs. 2005) for rape, robbery, assault, violent crime, burglary, larceny theft, motor vehicle theft, and property crime; however, the murder increased by 10.6%. At any rate, NYC crime still decreased by a cumulative 5.6%, versus 2.9% nationally. Overall, NYC crime has dropped 22.1% since 2001.
Mayor Bloomberg said, "Crime continues to come down in New York City, even as it goes up in other parts of the country. The hard work and innovative strategies of the NYPD are effective, but we will not rest on these successes. We will continue to give the police the tools they need to push crime down even further, while continuing to protect the City from the threat of terrorism." He did not mention the problems with recruiting and negotiating a new contract with the NYPD, though.
