New York Police Commissioner Jessica Tisch stated on Tuesday (April 15th) that while the crime rate in New York City has decreased in 2025, it is still higher than the final year before the implementation of the cashless bail reform in 2019. She attributed the deteriorating public safety in New York City to this “revolving door” bail system, with district attorneys in the city making this revolving door “spin even faster.”
“It’s very likely that you’ll only be charged with a minor offense like possession of stolen property, and then you’ll be released,” Tisch said during the annual breakfast meeting of the Citizens Crime Commission. “Auto theft is a serious crime, so it should be prosecuted as such, (but) if your charges are inappropriate, ultimately you’ll just be contributing to a significant increase in auto theft in the city.”
Tisch informed attendees that in the first three months of this year, overall major crime rates in the city have decreased by 10%, but “every New Yorker should know that things could be better.” The current crime rate is “far higher than” that of 2019, with the new bail reform rules being in effect just a few months ago.
Of those arrested in the first three months of this year, Tisch stated that 39% have been arrested at least once again, representing an increase of 46% compared to the first quarter of 2018 before the bail reform was implemented. Around 21% of those arrested in the first three months of this year have been arrested at least three times.
“Criminals are what we can’t control,” she said. “The revolving door of the criminal justice system is spinning faster than ever before, violent offenders are returning to the streets time and time again, and it’s the New Yorkers who suffer every day.”
Tisch attributed the high rate of repeat offenses to the leniency of district attorneys towards non-violent and property crimes, either “refusing to take cases or effectively dismissing them through adjournments.”
“I have challenged each of them to reassess any one-size-fits-all policy that is making the revolving door spin even faster,” she said, without specifically naming individual district attorneys. “We see that even violent offenders are being treated with various courtesies and excuses, released after being told ‘please do not reoffend.’ What do you think happens next? They commit crimes time and time again because they know that the benefits of committing crimes now outweigh the consequences.”