NEW YORK — More can be done to crack down on crime in the city, even after Albany scaled back controversial bail reforms, New York City Mayor Eric Adams said in an interview broadcast Sunday.
Adams praised state lawmakers who voted last week to modify the 2019 law removing cash bail for a number of crimes in an interview taped before he announced that he’d tested positive for COVID-19.
As part of the state budget passed early Saturday, judges now have more discretion to impose bail.
“There’s more to do. We must make sure there are no loopholes for anyone that will commit a violent crime in his city,” Adams told PIX 11, without going into detail. “It was a real W, but we have more to do. We have another few months in Albany to do it.”
He won office on a tough-on-crime platform. Nevertheless, crime is up nearly 25% in seven major categories, and a number of high-profile crimes have rattled the city since he took office Jan. 1.
Adams touted his measures to fight crime, including bringing back the NYPD’s controversial Anti-Crime Unit. He also reiterated his promises to get more officers onto the streets.
“We must analyze the manpower of the police department,” the mayor said. “So many police officers are doing civilian jobs. We didn’t hire them for that; I need them back in the street. They need to do the job that New Yorkers hired them for.”
Gun violence has skyrocketed this year. Shootings were up 74% as of April 3, compared with the same time frame last year, according to NYPD stats. Murders were up 26%.
Adams said he was concerned about the summer, when crime typically spikes.
“The summer months are difficult months, and we are concerned about them because you want to win January, February, March,” the mayor said.
He pointed to anti-crime efforts that include a program to get 100,000 kids summer jobs, among other measures.
On the city’s COVID-19 response, the mayor didn’t show any sign of changing his stance on requiring masks for kids ages 5 and under at schools.
“We’re rolling back slowly,” Adams said. “We want to roll this back but we have to do it right, and this is a tough decision.”
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