Mayor Michael R. Bloomberg and Police Commissioner Raymond W. Kelly today announced that New York City’s historic crime reduction has continued and New York remains the safest big city in the country according to the FBI’s Preliminary Semiannual Uniform Crime Report for the first six months of 2007. New York City’s 5 percent drop in violent crime and 3.8 percent decline in property crime outpaced the national decline of 1.8 percent for violent crime and 2.6 percent for property crime.

“Last year crime in New York City declined in every borough and in virtually every category, and fewer than 500 homicides were recorded for the entire year – a feat we haven’t seen since comparable records began to be kept more than 40 years ago,” said Mayor Bloomberg. “Today, the FBI’s report affirms that the strategies we have pursued continue to produce historic and sustained declines in crime that are leading the nation. For these tremendous achievements, the men and women of the NYPD deserve New Yorkers’ praise and gratitude.  They put their lives on the line every day to keep the rest of us safe, and over the past six years they have produced amazing results.”

“While it’s encouraging to see how favorably New York compares to other cities, the real satisfaction comes in knowing the numbers translate into lives saved and that the quality of life has been measurably improved for all who live and work in the City, as well as for those who visit,” said Police Commissioner Kelly.

According to data from the report, of the 241 cities with a population of over 100,000 that reported to the FBI, New York City is safer than 227 cities – ranked between Orange, California (population 136,165) and Santa Clarita, California (population 169,768). Out of the nation’s 25 largest cities, New York had the lowest Index Crime rate per 100,000 people.