The additional manpower provided through overtime and scheduling adjustments – along with other elements of the emergency legislation passed by the Council – have produced two measurable results. First, crime in DC is down sharply – including crime involving young people during curfew hours. Second, crime-fighting activity by the police is way up – including arrests and the confiscation of firearms.

My staff has prepared and distributed a brief report summarizing the impact of the crime emergency to date.  I think our record of success, during a relatively brief but intense period of activity, is certainly noteworthy.  I want to touch on just a few of the highlights for you today.

Since I declared the crime emergency on July 11, overall crime in the District is down by almost 14 percent, when compared with the same time period of 2005.  Violent crime is down by about 15 percent during this time period. This trend has been citywide in scope, with crime reductions in six of the seven police districts, including two districts – the First District and the Third District – that have been trending in the opposite direction for most of the year. 

Just as importantly, the crime emergency has helped to reverse the spike in crime – in particular the spike in violent crime – that prompted the emergency declaration in the first place. For example, homicides rose steadily from April of this year, peaking during the first half of July.  Since then, the number of homicides has plummeted – declining 46 percent between July and August. And even with the murders involving juveniles this past week, homicides have stabilized during September.  As you will see from one of the charts in your handout, homicides were essentially even with last year when I declared the crime emergency back on July 11. Since then, homicides have fallen by about 26 percent. As of today, our homicide count is about 9 percent below the total at this time last year, and 2005 was our lowest year for homicide since 1986.

Perhaps even more telling is the recent trend with respect to robbery, which is a crime, usually on the public space, that provokes a great deal of fear among residents. As such, robbery is a good indicator of violence on our neighborhood streets. Prior to the crime emergency, robberies were running 15 percent ahead of last year’s total. Since the crime emergency, robberies have been reduced by about 22 percent, and are now running only about 1 percent above last year. We certainly hope to get that number into “negative territory” before the end of the year. Robberies declined by 25 percent between July and August alone, meaning that there were 100 fewer victims last month. 

So the crime emergency has certainly produced dramatic reductions in crime, in a very short period of time and in almost every part of the city. The crime reductions can be attributed, in part, to substantial increases in police activity over the past two-and-a-half months. Arrests of adults are up by about 3 percent since July 12; arrests of juveniles have risen 23 percent. From July 12 through September 24, our officers recovered 530 illegal firearms, an increase of 14 percent over the same period of 2005.  And that total does not even include the 337 firearms we recovered during the gun buy-back held earlier this month, with funding provided by the Council.  Finally, curfew citations have ballooned by 175 percent during the crime emergency, reflecting the earlier curfew hours the Mayor has imposed. But even if you look only at curfews written after midnight, the number has risen by almost 30 percent during the crime emergency.

I do not believe it is mere accident or coincidence that crime has decreased so significantly and law enforcement activity has increased so sharply during the current crime emergency. Primary credit for these positive trends goes to our police officers and the civilian employees who support them. I am extremely proud of the hard work, dedication and sacrifice of our members. I understand they have families and family obligations too. But when the call went out to do something about an intolerable spike in crime in our city, they responded with the energy and professionalism that are hallmarks of the Metropolitan Police Department.  I want to take this opportunity to publicly thank and salute all of the men and women of our agency.  You have made a real difference in the lives of our residents.