New York City Mayor Eric Adams, a Democrat still a bit wet behind the ears, was in the Bronx earlier this week to show off his latest idea in beating back rampant crime: NYPD’s anti-gun squad. But that quickly morphed into a tougher stance on subway fare-beating offenses – reminiscent of the good old days of America’s mayor, Rudy Giuliani, who reigned 1994-2001. But after Giuliani left for greener pastures, New York City became a safe haven. Not for good, hard-working, and civic-minded folks but for the ne’er-do-well criminal types who were allowed to return to their old bad habits.
[articlepoll align=”right”]Echoing the public-minded tough-on-crime 1990s, Adams re-released the hounds on turnstile jumpers, telling reporters, “If we start saying it’s all right for you to jump the turnstile, we are creating an environment where any and everything goes.” In a city bursting at the seams, hopping a barrier to the subway is akin to a gateway offense. No one saw that coming. Especially city district attorneys, as Adams called them out, saying, “prosecutors declining to press charges” have sent mixed messages. Apparently, that is soon to be a policy of the past. Adams was unrelenting, limply stating, “They need to, it’s a crime. It’s a crime.” Emphasis was added because he said it twice.
The Symbol of Anything Goes in Gotham
Turnstile jumping may seem a petty crime compared to drug and human trafficking, violent assault, and murder. But Adams believes, as did Rudy, that allowing minor crimes to go unpunished emboldens criminals to amp up their felonious pursuits. As a result, subway crimes have seen an unthinkable rise in recent weeks.
From this time last year, grand larceny is up 475% – don’t nap with your $1,500 phone in your hand – and misdemeanor assault has soared 166%. At the end of February, one twisted individual smeared human feces on a female passenger waiting to board a train. Police arrested the suspect – and the judge released him. Just days prior, another subway rider was kicked down the platform stairs and hit in the head with a hammer.
Rudy Giuliani (Photo by Eren Abdullahogullari/Anadolu Agency via Getty Images)
So far in this calendar year, 32 subway crimes have been committed, compared to 12 in the same time frame last year. So it would make sense that Adams would put his inner Rudy in motion.
In the eight years Giuliani was mayor, he and Police Chief Commissioner Bernie Kerik cleaned up the city. They are credited with bringing back Times Square to be a safe gathering place for New Yorkers. Recently on Newsmax, Kerik pointed out: “[W]hen Rudy Giuliani came into office, we had four to five times the violent crime and the murders that they have today – four to five times. And people said it could never be changed – it’s never going to go down.”
But it did in a big way: major crime, violent crime, was reduced by 65%; murder by 70%; and in the black community, where violent crime was the highest, murder rates were reduced by almost 80%. And it all started with arresting so-called minor criminals – the turnstile jumpers, public urination offenders – and targeting landlords who allowed broken windows to blight city streets and neighborhoods.
Revisit the Rudy Method?
Adams has a tough row to hoe, saddled with New York County District Attorney Alvin Bragg and other soft-on-crime prosecuting attorneys. They prefer cuddling criminals with therapy instead of jail time. If Adams is so inclined and has the stones to demand assistance from the newly minted governor, he may find some relief. But Adams did not publicly address Governor Kathy Hochul more than to say: “I gave my blueprint to Albany. I don’t control Albany.” A straight-up politician’s strategy of kicking the can down the road.
Will Adams succeed in channeling his inner Rudy in the current defund-the-police political climate? Giuliani has his doubts. When asked by Rob Schmitt on Newsmax if Adams’ new policies would help solve the soaring crime rates, Giuliani replied: “The things he’s doing are so idiotic.”
So it appears Adams has a long way to go to impress America’s mayor.
~ Read more from Sarah Cowgill.
