Saturday, May 26, 2018

Doctoring the Safety Stats

Levels of crime and disorder are disturbingly high in schools and shelters, though de Blasio has modified reporting protocols in ways that make a full accounting of his administration's safety record all but impossible.

Grim tragedies in and around the shelters have made news, including stabbings, violent attacks on children, and even a "Near-decapitation." In February, the New York Daily News revealed that, as part of changes to how it reports on crime and disorder in the shelters, the city had ceased disclosing arrest totals.

These changes were necessary, the city subsequently explained, because shelter arrest data would expose "The individuals residing at specific ... locations to a heightened level of scrutiny and stigma." The new disclosure standards yielded results that are impossible to credit.

Last year, under the new guidelines, only 29 "Critical incidents" were reported at the Bedford-Atlantic Armory shelter, one of the system's largest and most notorious facilities.

Late last month, the city announced that the NYPD would begin making "Precinct level shelter arrest data" available.

Albany has launched an investigation into whether the city has been complying with state disclosure requirements relating to crime in shelters.

Looking to expand the shelter system, de Blasio is waging a public relations campaign to assure community groups that new shelters won't destabilize conditions in their neighborhoods.

New York City parents can't judge shifts in school safety over time, because a standard measure from which to draw comparisons no longer exists.

"The city found a way to say crimes are down in New York City public schools by changing crimes," says Local 237 executive director Derek Jackson, whose union represents both the school-safety agents and the peace officers who work in the shelter system, "And they found a way to say that crime is down in New York City shelters by simply not reporting it."

https://www.city-journal.org/html/doctoring-safety-stats-15937.html 

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