Public Employee Press

For the first time NYPD releases parks crime statistics

The New York Police Dept. released quarterly crime statistics for city parks for the first time. While the report only includes 31 public parks, it goes further than the Bloomberg administration did to comply with the law in more than a decade.

Last year the City Council adopted legislation crafted by its Safety Committee Chair Peter Vallone that required the Police Dept. to report crimes that occur in public parks of one acre or larger. The law requires NYPD to disclose by 2017 crime rates for all city parks larger than an acre and in 2018 it will include crime stats from Parks Dept. recreation facilities, pools, gyms and beaches.

"The release of information on parks safety shows that Mayor de Blasio and the new police commissioner are taking the problem more seriously than the previous administration that just swept crimes committed in city parks under the rug," said Local 983 President Joe Puleo, who chairs the DC 37 Parks Committee. Robbery and larceny are the most common offenses in city parks, the report showed.

But the NYPD's report excludes crimes committed in smaller parks, where, according to Puleo, most violent crime and vandalism occurs.

In testimony at City Council hearings and in lobbying city lawmakers, DC 37 leaders continue to press city officials on the need for safer parks. The union advocates for more safety enforcement training for Parks Enforcement Patrol Officers in Local 983, and for hiring year-round unionized Parks workers to maintain and protect the millions of New Yorkers and tourists who visit the city's public parkland, beaches, bike paths and green spaces.

"The recently released NYPD stats are ahead of what's scheduled and mandated," Puleo said. "This shows the new administration is taking steps to be more transparent."