Crime is on the increase. Have you noticed all the cops ?

It's murder out there.

Just when you thought the Bronx was getting safer, violent crime is creeping back up.

In fact, the borough's crime numbers for the first nine months of this year are responsible for about a quarter of the city's surge in homicides and shootings.

And while shootings are on the rise - cops say guns are back with a vengeance on Bronx streets - gun arrests are down in the double digits. In some precincts, gun arrests are down as much as 50% or more, while shootings there are up in the 30% range.

The percentages are high, but the numbers are nowhere near as bad as the bad old days of the early '90s, when crack cocaine drug wars were littering the streets with bodies and emergency rooms with shooting victims.

As of Oct. 5, there were 100 murders in the Bronx so far this year, compared to 88 for the same period last year - a 13.6% jump. Two years ago, murders were down 13%. Citywide, the numbers were 400 homicides versus 359 in 2007, up 11.4%. Two years ago, they were down 8.6%.

Some 383 people have been shot in the borough, compared to 359 last year - a 6.6% jump. Citywide, shootings are up 7.2%, with 1,420 victims compared to 1,324 last year.

Gun arrests are down 20.2% in the Bronx, and 12.3% citywide. That compares to a 25.6% Bronx decline, and a 16% citywide drop two years ago.

"There was a time when the heat was on, and you'd leave your gun at home," said one veteran Bronx detective. "If you got into a beef, at least you couldn't pull it out right there on the street."

One of the key questions police have to answer, experts say, is whether crime-fighting strategies have pushed crime as low as it can go, or if there may be a new trend, such as a rising youth population, that calls for new tactics.

Hard economic times ahead, in a borough with a quarter of the popula

tion already living below the federal poverty line, could also create a whole set of crime problems.

Robberies have already started creeping up in the borough, rising 5.6% so far this year, compared to a .3% increase two years ago.

One possible police response could be to resurrect or bolster some crimefighting methods, such as the citywide street crime unit that focused on getting guns off the streets.

One thing for certain, in police stationhouses and squadrooms across the Bronx, the general talk is that shootings are way out of hand, with guns now commonplace on the streets, particularly among youths and young men.

"These young kids are out of control," said one Bronx homicide detective. "It seems to be a trend every few years where you have younger kids involved, teenagers that are running the streets."

probably just me then ...



fear the reaper

ah, I knew something was up I can feel it

Getting better at hiding them.

Well I've noticed more police sirens in the night air than usual lately.

And guns are illegal there as well !

Try living next to the police firing range I wonder sometimes why I trip out I listen to them all day sometimes. I miss my ocean view.

nyc is giving out a huge amount of tickets for stupid thing and im not kidding here, walking your dog without a leash even if its a poodle 200 bucks, parked at hydrant even if you are in the car 115

the mayor made it clear to the cops they either start bringing in more money or lay offs will be a must

as I type this I can hear a police helicopter flying in circles not too far away

I think we have a situation here maverick

there was always a correlation on how good the economy is doing vs crime rate

They've solved that one around here. There is a street "California" street right when you get off the freeway before you go into a long stretch to Santa Barbara, big spot for gas and locals on the weekend. This yellow light is the shortest in town. I know people that never got a ticket in their lives get one there. Cameras Cameras I can't go to the fucking grocery store without seeing my ugly mug on five different monitors now.

Anyway if you get snaked on this light your paying $350 plus traffic school fees on your first offense.