NEW YORK (WCBS 880) — The NYPD has not been able to solve nearly as many crimes as it would like to during the pandemic.
The clearance rate is down to 26.5%. This time last year, that same rate was nearly 36%.
WCBS 880’s Kevin Rincon spoke with NYPD Chief of Detectives Rodney Harrison on Wednesday, who says the pandemic is largely to blame for the spike in crime in New York City.
Harrison tells WCBS 880 that, because of the pandemic, courts are not operating at 100%, there are fewer criminal jury trials and there is a lot of gang violence going on. Meanwhile, the community relationship with police is strained at the moment.
Chief Harrison says one thing the NYPD has noticed in recent months is people affiliated with gangs antagonizing each other online. He notes that's led to the spike in gun violence we're now seeing in the city.
Harrison says they are relying heavily on community support, but there’s been a reluctance to come forward.
For example, the NYPD is still investigating the case of two infants that were found dead behind a residential building in the Bronx last month.
“Unfortunately, we don't have any people of interest at this time so we've been reaching out to the community,” the NYPD chief says.
Last week, there was also a shooting at a Sweet Sixteen in Bedford-Stuyvesant in Brooklyn in which a 20-year-old, who was visiting from Virginia, was killed.
“We have some individuals what way that we're looking at, a lot of work still needs to be done; but I am confident and optimistic that we will bring closure to this arrest sooner than later,” Harrison said.
The NYPD says it's critical to build back the relationship with the community, something that's been falling apart dramatically within the last year.
Harrison says they are especially working on “getting people to come forward and want to have trust in others law enforcement agency and help us identify people that commit crimes.”
The NYPD says a number of other factors are also at play, including COVID illnesses among officers and the diversion of resources to cover huge demonstrations after George Floyd’s death.
The department says it is not ready to release third quarter figures, but the numbers are beginning to improve.
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