NYC crime is not worst ever, despite claims

Following Monday’s congressional hearing on violent crime in New York City, claims spread across social media that the bad old days are back in the nation’s largest city.

Conservatives and other users widely shared a video clip of New York City Councilman Robert Holden, who testified at the special hearing in Manhattan that he’s “never seen the lawlessness” he’s seen today in his lifetime.

“DEMOCRAT city councilman Robert Holden has lived in New York City for 71 years,” Republicans on the House Judiciary Committee that held the hearing tweeted, along with a clip of the Queens lawmaker’s testimony. “He’s never seen crime this bad.”

But experts and city officials say crime across the five boroughs is nowhere near the levels seen in the 1990s, and while there was a rise in 2022, those figures are already trending down this year.

Here’s a closer look at the facts.

CLAIM: Crime in New York City is the worst it’s ever been, especially in the borough of Manhattan where Trump faces criminal charges.

THE FACTS: While it’s true that major crimes in New York City rose last year compared to 2021, criminal justice experts say crime levels were significantly higher three decades ago, and that the current levels are more comparable to where New York was a decade ago, when people frequently lauded it as America’s safest big city.

The New York Police Department and Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg’s office, meanwhile, argue the recent surge is already receding. Through the first quarter of 2023, major crimes are down overall compared to the same period last year.

Nevertheless, the notion of a crime wave washing over the Big Apple has been a steady refrain on social media since Bragg’s office brought charges against former President Donald Trump, who has