Hochul admin touts drop in gun violence in urban areas outside NYC

The Hochul Administration touted improved gun violence statistics Thursday, with the triumvirate of Deputy Secretary for Public Safety Marcos Soler, Division of Criminal Justice Services Executive Deputy Commissioner Joseph Popcun and State Police Superintendent Steven James telling reporters that gun violence declined in recent years in New York, reaching historic lows. 

Their stats focused on population centers outside of New York City and spotlighted different timespans. Western New York shooting incidents resulting in injury saw a 51% drop between 2021 and 2023 while the Finger Lakes region, featuring Rochester, saw a 29% drop. In the first four months of 2024, Central New York, featuring Syracuse, saw a 68% drop in gun violence involving injuries compared to the previous five years, while Long Island saw a 58% drop. 

The announcement comes ahead of a critical election for Democrats in New York as the balance of power in Congress hangs in the balance. Republicans are expected to hammer public safety concerns, among other critiques of Democratic policy, in an attempt to hold and improve upon suburban gains made in 2022. 

“Nationally, we see gun homicides, in particular fatal shootings, are starting to fall, however, they remain at higher levels than any time since the 1990s,” said Soler. “That's not the case in New York precisely because of our initiatives.”

Popcun explained that the drop in violence could be attributed to programs like the state’s Gun Involved Violence Elimination Initiative which provides resources to local law enforcement jurisdictions, investments in criminal justice made by Hochul and a holistic approach to crime that sometimes includes social work. 

Soler added that though the stats were encouraging, “we will never take a victory lap.” 

“Unfortunately, one too many murders or shootings are too many, so from our perspective, we will continue to push on the commitments from the governor,” he said. 

The state also reported that illegal firearm seizures tripled over the past four years and the 802 firearms recovered through April are more than those seized by law enforcement in the full years 2018, 2019 and 2020.

“We've leveraged our partnerships continually on other task forces and all local agencies. It works out to be symbiotic,” said James. “So where there's a gap, we look to bridge that.”

Reducing gun violence was a priority for state lawmakers this session. They ultimately dedicated over $90 million to the issue in the state budget.