While communities across the tri-state area are reporting record lows in shootings and homicides, serious challenges remain.<\/p>\n
Earlier this year, New York’s top leaders touted major progress in the fight against gun violence.<\/p>\n
The NYPD said that 2025 was the safest year on record for shootings. Brooklyn recorded the fewest homicides in borough history.<\/p>\n
Brooklyn District Attorney Eric Gonzalez credits what he calls a targeted strategy, focusing resources on a relatively small group believed to be responsible for most of the violence.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt\u2019s about 1% of the population that’s responsible for 60% to 70% of the violence,\u201d he says. \u201cBrooklyn has never been safer.”<\/p>\n
But falling crime numbers don’t always reflect how everyday residents feel.<\/p>\n
“I think the tide is turning that people are starting to believe that the numbers are coming down and that’s because we’ve gotten a hold of subway crime and some of the shoplifting,” says Gonzalez. <\/p>\n
While shootings might be down in many local communities, the tri-state continues to feel the devastating impact of gun violence.<\/p>\n
The Turn To Tara team analyzed the latest federal data, and it shows that on average, a person is killed every nine hours in New York, every 20 hours in New Jersey and every two days in Connecticut – costing the three states more than $19 billion a year.<\/p>\n
It\u2019s been a wake-up call in Westchester County, New York where lawmakers just passed a new gun warning law.<\/p>\n
It requires gun dealers to display graphic images showing the risks linked to firearms, including suicide, domestic violence and homicide.<\/p>\n
Supporters say the visual warnings could help people make more informed decisions about gun ownership.<\/p>\n
\u201cThey say a picture is worth 1,000 words,\u201d says Westchester County Legislator David Imamura. \u201cWe hope a picture saves a life.\u201d<\/p>\n
If you have a gun-related issue you want Tara Rosenblum to look into, click here<\/a>.<\/p>\n RELATED STORIES:<\/p>\n Under the Gun: A Turn to Tara Exclusive<\/a><\/p>\n Under the Gun: Gun violence crisis and its connection to gangs<\/a><\/p>\n Under the Gun: Taking aim at gun violence plaguing the tri-state<\/a><\/p>\n