Paterson's decline in shootings and gun deaths is an outlier in NJ. This may be why

PATERSON — The city's substantial reduction in reported gun violence so far this year is in stark contrast with shooting victim statistics for other large urban areas in New Jersey, according to data compiled by the state police.

Paterson had a 26.3% decrease in fatal shooting victims from Jan. 1 through Oct. 22, compared with the same time for 2022, the data showed. The city also had a 19.4% drop in nonfatal gunshot victims during that time.

In contrast, three cities — Elizabeth, Jersey City and Trenton — endured increases in the number of people killed by gunfire through Oct. 22, according to the state police statistics.

Meanwhile, Camden had the same number of shooting fatalities during that time as it did last year, and Newark saw a 7.7% decrease. Statewide, gunshot fatalities went down by 9.9%, the data showed.

Camden, Elizabeth and Jersey City all had increases in total gun violence victims.

Paterson has gone through a tumultuous stretch in 2023, including the fatal police shooting of activist Najee Seabrooks and the New Jersey attorney general’s subsequent decision to take control of the city Police Department on March 27.

What did NJ attorney general say?

“While I'm happy to say that crime is down in Paterson, one murder — one shooting — is one too many,” said Attorney General Matthew Platkin. “At the end of the day, we will not judge our efforts in Paterson on numbers alone.

“We are succeeding in Paterson because we are bringing lasting change and innovation to the Police Department,” Platkin added. “We're rebuilding relationships and trust between community members and the police officers who serve them. Together, we are building a police department we can be proud of and a safer Paterson.”

Platkin appointed retired New York City Police Chief Isa Abbassi as officer in charge of the Paterson Police Department. Abbassi in September outlined a two-year “Next Generation” plan with 55 initiatives for reforming the department. They include new technology, additional training, changes in policies and the creation of citizen advisory councils.

“Public safety cannot be judged by shooting data alone,” Abbassi said. “Although the city of Paterson is certainly a safer place than it was one year ago, there is still more to do. The men and women of the Paterson Police Department continue to rise to the challenge, we know what’s important to our residents, and despite attempts to distract, we will keep our heads down and do the work.”

Spike in homicides sparks concern

After Abbassi’s summer initiative success, Paterson Press on Sept. 5 asked the New Jersey State Police for shooting statistics for major cities to evaluate where Paterson stacked up compared with other urban areas. State officials provided those numbers on Oct. 28.

During the state’s delay in producing the data, Paterson went through a spike of six homicides in October, a flurry of killings that in some ways underscored the precarious nature of public safety statistics. City cops often don’t like talking about lulls in Paterson’s street violence because they know how quickly the numbers can change.

The year-to-year data compiled by the state police through Oct. 22 showed that Paterson’s total of fatal and nonfatal shooting victims went from 112 in 2022 to 89 in 2023, Camden’s from 95 to 100, Elizabeth's from 20 to 35, Jersey City's from 56 to 58, Newark's from 199 to 194, and Trenton's from 94 to 68.

“That’s the goal, for sure,” responded Brian Higgins, the former Bergen County police chief who teaches at John Jay College of Criminal Justice in Manhattan, when asked about Paterson’s shooting reductions.

“But I don’t know that the attorney general can take credit for all of that,” Higgins added. “There may be some things that were being done in advance of him going in that are catching up now.”

Jason Williams, a justice professor at Montclair State University who follows public safety issues in Paterson, said his experience is that people in the city don’t feel that gun crime has gone down, despite what the statistics say.

“They see it as a continuation of violence,” said Williams, also a Black Lives Matter member.

Williams said he was not sure comparing crime stats among New Jersey cities was the best way to evaluate public safety in those places.

“They all have different needs, different issues,” Williams said. “The on-the-ground reality is that Paterson is strikingly different from Newark and strikingly different from Camden.”

Mayor Andre Sayegh, who is suing the Attorney General's Office to regain control of the Paterson Police Department, said it was important to note that the city’s shootings statistics already were declining during the first three months of 2023, before the state takeover.

Paterson Policemen's Benevolent Association President Angel Jimenez said the increased overtime provided under state control has had a “huge impact” on the drop in gun violence in the city.

“If you saturate the streets with cops, crime will go down,” Jimenez said. “It’s a no-brainer. As soon as that overtime stops and the cops are off the street, you’ll see what happens.”

Jimenez said the Police Department has never really recovered from the 2011 budget cuts that resulted in the layoffs of 125 officers.

“It was a different department before that,” he said.

The PBA president said Paterson needs a sustained investment in bolstering the ranks of its police force. Higgins, the former Bergen County chief, echoed that assessment.

“The answer is always more cops,” he said.

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'Nothing has really changed'

But Williams, the BLM member and justice professor, expressed doubts about that solution.

“Law enforcement is not therapeutic; it’s not social justice,” he said. “It’s not going to fix the issues in Paterson.”

Williams expressed skepticism about the summer initiative, which included substantial police foot patrols along a notorious stretch of Broadway in Paterson.

“Nothing has really changed,” the justice professor said. “The drugs and homelessness are still there. They’ve just moved it outward from Broadway.”

About half the $910,000 that paid for the summer initiative and its major overtime tab came from the $10 million added to the state budget, the Attorney General's Office said. The rest was from state funding that predated the budget, officials said.

The Attorney General's Office has not outlined a spending list for the $10 million, officials said.

“These funds were not intended to fund specific projects or initiatives, and the amount was deemed to be an estimated appropriation that could be drawn upon as necessary,” the Attorney General's Office said of the $10 million.

Among the ways the office said it expects to spend the $10 million are for salaries of state employees assigned to Paterson, technology, cellphones, community programming and overtime for police assigned to neighborhood stabilization efforts like the one on Broadway.

“The amount budgeted is an estimate and not meant to be a straight allocation,” state officials said. “It provides funds that can be drawn upon. They do not necessarily have to be expended in full and could potentially be increased if the need arises.”

Joe Malinconico is editor of Paterson Press. Email: editor@patersonpress.com

This article originally appeared on NorthJersey.com: Paterson NJ: Shooting decline is an outlier in New Jersey