Dramatic increase in shootings in New York
The New York Times reports today that the number of shootings in New York is up from 396 at this point last year to 632 this year. This is a very dramatic rise. Compared to last year the number of arrests is down 62%. Some of this is due to more police out sick with Coronavirus, but it seems certain that some has to do with hesitation about policing interventions. Whatever the causes, at the minimum this supports the idea, which obviously makes common sense, that the police do deter crime and that defunding the police would be a disaster.
The trump campaign has already produced an ad about somebody trying to call 911 about a rape and being told in a recorded message the police is closed down, to dial 1 for a shooting, 2 for a rape, 3 for a home invasion, and that the estimated wait time for police officers is 5 days. Could this turn into the Willie Horton of 2020 and allow trump to snatch victory from the jaws of defeat?
Advocacy of defunding seems driven by ideology and sounds more like the evidence- free notions of the trump administration than what thoughtful people should be suggesting.
