Tracking New York City homicides
The New York Times now has a homicide map that shows slayings dating back to 2003.
So far this year, the sprawling city with more than 7 million people has had just 163 slayings, down by 65 from this time last year. Baltimore, with 635,000, is now up to 102 for the year, up seven from this time last year. If New York number's hold, they're on pace for about 325 killings this year, which would be less than during some years in Baltimore in the murderous 1990s. We set a record in 1993 with 353 slayings.
The New York map is stunning to look at. Only 21 people have been killed in Manhattan this year (though the map doesn't say when it was last updated), which is three less than the number killed in just one Baltimore police district, the Northeast, which has recorded 24 killings so far this year.
The two cities are impossible to compare but there is no doubt that New York, which once had 2,245 slayings in 1990, now has one of the lowest per-capita murder rates in the nation. Baltimore stands at the second most murderous city behind Detroit.
The New York Times story that accompanies the map, which will be update routinely, gives an historic perspective on murder. You can track Baltimore homicides on our map as well.
Comments
Actually, Baltimore is now #1 in homicides in the U.S. (per capita, in cities over 100,000 people). If you include cities under 100,000, I think only New Orleans and St. Louis have more than us
Posted by: Hank | June 19, 2009 11:43 AM
Question: Did New York actually lower the murder rate, or has it been pushed out to the older/New Jersey suburbs. How's Newark and Jersey City's murder rates these days?
Looking at the map, can't quite figure out Borough population vs. these numbers. I would consider Brooklyn-Baltimore, Bronx-Baltimore a better "apples to apples" comparison.
In NYC, you can push crime to the fringes, away from the tourists. In D.C. you push crime to PG County. Not quite sure where you can push Baltimore's crime to.
Posted by: GMan | June 19, 2009 12:12 PM
The numbers for NYC may look much better in comparison. But you have to take into consideration NYC consists of 5 boroughs and a very large mass of land. Baltimore is not a very large city in comparison so I don't think the comparison is fair.
Posted by: Anonymous | June 22, 2009 3:35 PM