NEW YORK \u2014 Murders and shootings in the city continue to drop, but rapes are still up halfway through the year, according to statistics.<\/p>\n
The NYPD said its continued push to encourage more victims to report what happened to them, coupled with an expanded definition of what constitutes rape<\/a>, has fueled the increase \u2014 up 6% this year through June 21.<\/p>\n In fact, recent NYPD press releases detailing crime statistics for the prior month have noted the incidents now considered rape under the Rape is Rape Act<\/a> \u2014 which went into effect Sept. 1, 2024, \u200bbroadening the state\u2019s definition to include nonconsensual sexual contact. The previous definition was limited to vaginal penetration by a penis. Police Commissioner Jessica Tisch has said the expanded definition is necessary to combat sex crimes.<\/p>\n Jane Manning<\/a>\u200b, director of Women\u2019s Equal Justice, a nonprofit that \u200bhelps sexual assault\u200b survivors, said it was important to highlight the new law\u2019s impact in 2025, when rapes jumped 16% compared to the year before \u2014 up to 2,048 from 1,762.<\/p>\n But rather than continue to cite the new definition, she said the public would be better served if there were more investigators assigned to the NYPD Special Victims Unit and a more comprehensive strategy for preventing rape and other sex crimes.<\/p>\n \u201cIn the Bronx, they saw a problem and put resources into combating it,\u201d Manning said, noting the Police Department\u2019s recent move to split the borough into two patrol commands<\/a>. \u201cThey came up with a strategy. But a 13-year-old gets raped in Van Cortland Park \u2014 where is your strategy combating that?\u201d<\/p>\n