NEW YORK (1010 WINS) -- As he wrapped up his first year, Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg told 1010 WINS on Wednesday that his office accomplished a lot in 2022 but that there's always more work to be done.
The 49-year-old prosecutor told Budd Mishkin on 1010 WINS Newsline that the main takeaways from the year were that "our gun prosecutions are up, our hate crime prosecutions are up, and shootings and homicides are down citywide—and down even further in Manhattan."
Asked what he'd like to do better in the new year, Bragg said, "I think we just need to keep building and working."
"We're encouraged by what we see, but there's certainly more work to do," he said. "Obviously, I live here, I'm raising my family here, and see some of the same public safety challenges in my everyday walks as others."
According to the latest NYPD crime data—which covers all five boroughs, not just Manhattan—major crimes were down 1.2% citywide in November 2022 compared to 2021. Still some crimes remained up, including an increase of 20% for murder, 9.4% for grand larceny auto, 3.6% for robbery and 3.0% for felony assault.
Transit crime has become a particular concern for many New Yorkers, though NYPD data shows such crime was down 12.8% in November compared to the same month in 2021.
Bragg wanted New Yorkers who feel unsafe riding the subway to know "we're taking violence on the train very seriously."
He pointed to the recent indictment of a man who tried to sexually assault a woman on a train in Lower Manhattan, as well as the five-year prison sentence given to a man who groped a woman on a bus and the four-year sentence handed to a man who shoved a stranger onto tracks in Harlem.
"It's unfortunate, obviously, that these things are happening," he said. "The violent acts we're taking very seriously, using our resources to hold people accountable and hopefully get deterrents."
His office is also "working hard" on mental health, including by launching two social work programs to address mental health issues, substance abuse and recidivism.
The programs, which were announced earlier in December, will be funded by a $9 million grant from the D.A.'s Criminal Justice Investment Initiative — a discretionary fund created with seized money from major banks during prosecution.
Bragg said it's all about connecting people to services in their communities before they have an interaction with the criminal justice system.
"So we want to be on the prevention side of the equation, as well, and also on the accountability side," he said.
Asked about the challenges that guns without serial numbers—known as "ghost guns"—pose, he said it's a growing issue for the city.
"We are seeing ever more non-serialized guns," he said. "We can't track them the way we do with trafficking, where we're seeing them coming up from the South."
"So it's a particular enforcement priority for us," he continued. "We've had a number of good investigations that have removed ghost guns from our streets. But like everything we've discussed, we're remaining vigilant and we know there's more work to do."
