The 12-day period without a murder matches a 2015 milestone, underscoring a historic decline in violent crime
A Historic Public Safety Milestone
New York City has tied a modern-era record by going 12 consecutive days without a single homicide, matching a streak last achieved in 2015. The NYPD confirmed that the period from November 25 through December 7, 2025, passed without a murder investigation, a remarkable achievement for a city of 8.5 million people and a powerful symbol of the sustained, dramatic reductions in violent crime over the past three decades.
Context of Long-Term Decline
This milestone is not an anomaly but part of a long-term trend. The city is on track to record its lowest annual homicide total since the early 1960s, with shooting incidents and victims also at record lows for the modern statistical era. The decline represents an extraordinary reversal from the early 1990s, when the city recorded over 2,200 murders in a single year. Experts cite a confluence of factors, including data-driven policing, economic changes, demographic shifts, and significant investments in community-based violence interruption programs.
NYPD Leadership’s Response
Police Commissioner Jessica Tisch credited the department’s strategic focus and the work of officers across all ranks for creating the conditions that made the record possible. She emphasized precision policing strategies that target violent individuals and gangs, coupled with strengthened community partnerships. Mayor Eric Adams, a former NYPD captain, framed the achievement as validation of his administration’s public safety blueprint, which combines enforcement with prevention and intervention. The NYPD’s official crime statistics portal provides transparent, regularly updated data.
Challenges and Persistent Inequities
While celebrating the citywide achievement, officials and advocates were quick to note that violence has not been eliminated and remains concentrated in historically underserved neighborhoods. The record streak was broken on December 8 by a fatal shooting in a Bronx public housing development, a stark reminder that geographic and racial disparities in public safety persist. The challenge, leaders acknowledge, is to extend the peace experienced in much of the city to every block and precinct.
Political and Social Implications
The record arrives amid ongoing national debates about policing, crime, and urban safety. It provides potent evidence for those who argue that New York’s model of reformed but robust policing is effective, potentially influencing policy discussions in other cities grappling with crime spikes. However, critics continue to urge greater investment in the root causes of violencehousing, education, mental health servicesarguing that true safety requires more than police presence.
Sustaining the Success
The central question now is whether this milestone represents a peak or a new baseline. The NYPD and city government face the difficult task of sustaining these gains amid fiscal pressures, officer attrition, and the constant evolution of criminal enterprises. The 12-day period without a homicide serves as both a celebration and a challenge: proof of what is possible, and a standard against which the city’s ongoing commitment to safety will be measured.
