For Immediate Release

CITY OF NEWARK ANNOUNCES PUBLIC SAFETY REPORT FOR 2008; DROPS IN MURDERS, SHOOTINGS, AND CIVILIAN COMPLAINTS HAILED

Murders fell 32 percent in 2008, shootings down 14 percent; Mayor attributes success to strategy, technology, and professionalism

Newark, NJ – January 7, 2009 – Mayor Cory A. Booker and Police Director Garry F. McCarthy announced the Newark Police Department's public safety report for 2008 at a Police/Fire Command Center press conference today, hailing the continuing reductions in murders and shootings as a sign of the progress the City is making in cutting crime and creating a safer community.

At the press conference, Mayor Booker and Director McCarthy displayed statistics that show fewer murders and shootings in Newark in 2008, as well as a reduction of citizen complaints against police, and cuts in overtime expenditures, which reflect a police department that is attacking crime in a professional and cost-effective manner.

"Our public safety efforts would not be possible without the partnerships we have with county, state, and federal agencies," Mayor Booker said. "We graduated another class of police recruits from our Academy yesterday and will pass another class through the Academy later this year, which will be another step forward. I am proud of the accomplishments of the Police Department, under the leadership and determination of its director, Garry F. McCarthy, and the teamwork and professionalism of the entire force."

Also in attendance were Deputy Mayor for Public Safety Ron Salahuddin; Public Safety Adviser Anthony Campos; Essex County Prosecutor Paula Dow; Essex County Sheriff Armando Fontoura; Chief of Essex County Detectives Anthony S. Ambrose III; himself a former Newark Police Director; Drug Enforcement Agency Assistant Special Agent-in-Charge for New Jersey John McCabe; DEA Special Agent-in-Charge Gerard P. McAleer; and New Jersey Alcohol, Tobacco, and Firearms Bureau Special Agent Matt Horase.

Director McCarthy noted that the Newark is leading American cities with populations of 200,000 or more in reducing murders. In 2008, shootings in Newark fell by 32 percent, from 99 to 67. "Compared with 2006, when we had 107 murders, this is an even greater cut, of 38 percent," Director McCarthy said.

The Mayor also pointed out that in 2008, for the first time since 1961, Newark went 43 consecutive days without a single murder. "A Columbia University professor had placed the odds of this happening at one in 11,482. We do not attribute this to luck, but to the determination
of a City, its people, and its Police Department to end crime and violence within its borders," Mayor Booker said.

Mayor Booker also noted that his administration had sent 250 recruits through the Police Academy, with the 114th Recruit Class of 58 new officers joining the force yesterday, and another class planned for later this year. The Department now has 1,312 officers on the force.

Director McCarthy pointed out the continuing reduction in shootings. Newark saw 339 shooting incidents in 2008, some 393 in 2007, and 502 in 2006, an overall decline of 32 percent in the three-year period, and a 14 percent cut in 2008 from 2007's total.

At the same time, civilian complaints against the police have also been reduced, from 612 in 2006 to 578 in 2007 and down to 485 in 2008, an overall cut of 21 percent in three years. In 2008, 93 fewer civilian complaints were made against the Newark Police than in 2007, a 16 percent cut.
"We are proud that our crime-fighting efforts have been achieved while simultaneously reducing police misconduct and complaints about police behavior," Director McCarthy said. "This is a testament to the increased professionalism exemplified by individual officers as a result of effective management controls, as well as the community's enhanced perception of police legitimacy."

The Department also saved the City money and increased its effectiveness by cutting its overtime hours. In 2008, there were 77,823 fewer hours of overtime incurred than in 2006, a reduction of 20 percent. In 2006, the Department had 397,170 hours of overtime, 329,744 in 2007, and 293,414 in 2008. Financially, the City expended $19.8 million on police overtime in 2006, $18.1 million in 2007, and $16.1 million in 2008, an overall savings of $3.7 million.

"Because collective bargaining agreements provide for yearly raises in salary, the monetary costs associated with overtime usually rise," Director McCarthy said. "Contrary to this norm, the Department has been able to reduce overtime expenditures by $3.7 million since 2008. The $3.7 million saved through reduction of overtime is the equivalent of paying the salary of 120 new police officers for one year."

Director McCarthy pointed out two key reasons for the Department's success in 2008, one involving technology, the other involving police field work.
"Operation Impact was implemented on June 4, 2008," Director McCarthy said, "and we infused high-crime areas with a saturation of uniformed officers, deployed based upon crime trends identified through Geographic Information System analysis, and we constantly analyze and re-asses the crime and enforcement activity on a daily basis. That drive resulted in 844 arrests, 861 field interrogations, and 1,260 summonses issued. The areas that were targeted saw a 67 percent reduction in murders, a 67 percent reduction in shootings, and a 20 percent reduction in overall crime."

Director McCarthy also hailed the Department's leadership in deploying state-of-the-art technology to fight crime. These included a high-profile initiative: the deployment of 109 video cameras throughout the City, which record digital video 24 hours a day, seven days a week, at locations across Newark. The City is now deploying ShotSpotter Gunshot Recognition Technology that will instantly pinpoint the location of gunshots in real-time. "The use of video cameras cannot be overstated," Director McCarthy said. "These cameras are monitored 24 hours a day, and quicken our response time to incidents and provide us with perfect evidence. They also act as a deterrent to criminal behavior."

Director McCarthy also credited a collaborative drug law enforcement initiative, the Violent Enterprise Source Targeting (VEST) program, coordinated by the DEA New Jersey Division and the NY/NJ High Intensity Drug Trafficking Area (HIDTA). The VEST program is an innovative, multi-agency effort to disrupt and dismantle violent criminal organizations in the city. This unprecedented initiative combines the talents and resources of thirteen city, county, state and federal criminal justice entities joining forces to share intelligence, target the most violent offenders, conduct sustained enforcement operations, and coordinate prosecutions.

Director McCarthy also noted the implementation of a computerized Records Management System, which is a highly secured system for tracking, storing, and retrieving police records, enabling them to be instantly accessed from police computers and laptops; as well as the use of Live Scan Technology which does inkless, electronic fingerprinting, and instantly transmits the fingerprint data to the FBI, State Police, and other agencies for criminal identification agencies.

"Putting paperwork and fingerprinting onto computers and networking with other agencies enables us to make and retrieve accurate information and reports about incidents and persons," Director McCarthy said. "When we fingerprint someone, we can now immediately check that record with other agencies to see if that person is wanted in other jurisdictions or sought in other criminal cases."

While noting the successes, Mayor Booker pointed out that more work has to be done. "We have made major and dramatic steps in creating a safer Newark, in defining Newark as a leader in crime reduction, in manifesting Newark's excellence as a place in which to live, work, and play. However, we are not satisfied with the results by any means. We have much more work to do to make our City safe, we will roll up our sleeves and do that work, and 2009 will be Newark's time to shine."

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