The Adams administration’s top priority has always been public safety. New Yorkers want to send their children to school, go to work, shop at the local store, go out to dinner, and return safely to their community and home with their family. They want to feel safe and secure and we are delivering on this. From day one, we went to work to eliminate crime and illegal activities from our neighborhoods.
We have removed more than 22,300 illegal guns from our streets, addressed subway crime, addressed serious mental health issues and quality of life issues. The numbers are clear, crime figures from the second quarter of this year reveal that our public safety strategy continues to make our city safer. We have now had six consecutive quarters of crime decline since January 1, 2024.
Through the first six months of 2025, shootings are at their lowest point in recorded history, the same as the record set in 2018. And if we compare this six-month period to the same period in 2021, just before the Adams administration began its mission to confront violent crime, shootings have dropped an impressive 54%.
Major crime has decreased by 5.5%, which is equivalent to 3,348 fewer crimes. That means thousands of people were not victims of crime, because we stayed focused. Homicides are down more than 23% this year. Robberies, aggravated assaults, burglaries, grand thefts and auto theft also continue to decline so far this year. In the month of June, crime fell 6%, in all major crime categories. That means there were fewer homicides, rapes, robberies, aggravated assaults, burglaries, grand thefts and auto thefts.
Our metros are becoming safer, with a decrease in transport crime in June, in the second quarter and so far this year. This is due to the increase in police officers on the trains and platforms of our transportation system, which is where they are needed most. Thanks to these initiatives, we have reached another record: theft in the transportation system is at its lowest level in history.
Business owners have also seen a more than 17% decrease in shoplifting in June, and about 10% so far this year, ensuring that hard-working New Yorkers’ money stays in their hands and not those of criminals.
Additionally, we continue to keep all of our communities safe, with a 17% decrease in hate crimes in the second quarter, and a 16% decrease so far this year. This cumulative decrease is due to the reduction in anti-Semitic hate crimes, which have decreased by 18%, and hate crimes against Muslims, which have decreased by 11%. Hate crimes based on sexual orientation have also decreased by 47%.
This reduction in crime is no coincidence; is the result of our administration’s clear and continued focus on addressing crime and quality of life issues. We have listened to New Yorkers and worked to make our city safer.
Through our Community Link initiative, we are addressing quality of life issues such as illegal street vending, overflowing trash, excessive noise, substance abuse, and illegal vehicles. We have removed 100,000 illegal vehicles and mopeds from our streets since the beginning of the administration, and we have closed more than 1,500 illegal cigarette shops, which are now reopening as small businesses and thriving.
All of these numbers demonstrate real progress. But that’s not all. We will continue to work tirelessly every day and everywhere to build a safer, more affordable city, the best place to raise a family. Thanks to our unwavering focus on public safety and the hard work of the brave men and women of the New York City Police Department (NYPD), New York City remains the safest large city in the United States.
Eric Adams is the Mayor of New York City