NEW YORK -- Gov. Kathy Hochul has increased the number of National Guard troops in the New York City subway system, she announced Wednesday -- doubling down on a controversial deployment that she credits with helping drive down subway crime.
"It's clear to me, as I've heard from many people, that the presence of the National Guard has made not just a physical difference, but a psychological difference in how they feel about safety," Hochul told reporters at a press conference at the Grand Central subway station.
Citing an expected uptick in tourists visiting the city for the holidays, Hochul announced she had deployed 250 additional New York Guard members to the subway system.
"I'll be clear -- this is not in response to a specific crime, we're not seeing a trend that's alarming," Hochul said. "It's about continuing a strategy that has proven its success, and expanding it to protect even more people."
Hochul first deployed 750 members of the New York Guard and 250 state and MTA police officers to the system in March, part of a multi-pronged effort to reduce violent crime on city subways.
The guard members and state troopers, some armed with military-style M4 carbines, became an immediately visible presence at some of the city's transit hubs, standing alongside NYPD officers while they searched straphangers' bags.
The guard members quickly stowed the long guns amid concerns they were militarizing the subway system, and in recent months, the soldiers and airmen with the Guard have been seen throughout the system, working with law enforcement at various stations throughout the city.
The Guard deployment was the primary effort of a multi-prong plan that also involved mental health outreach, the installation of surveillance cameras in every subway car, and regular meetings between prosecutors and transit officials in an effort to curb recidivism.
"It's made an extraordinary difference," Hochul said Wednesday. "Subway crime is down 10% just since last March."
"In only two years since the year 1970 have we had fewer subway crimes than we had this past year," she added.
As of Sunday, major crime was down 6% on the subway system from this time last year, a reduction driven by a 20% decrease in burglaries and a 16% drop in robberies.
But nine people have been killed in the subway system so far this year, up 80% from the five who were killed by this time last year. Five rapes have been reported, one more than this time last year.
Felonious assaults have held relatively steady, dropping 1.6%.
The Guard members -- who operate as part of a 9/11-era counter-terrorism deployment known as "Empire Shield" -- are not law enforcement officers. They cannot legally arrest anyone, and a Guard officer told the Daily News Wednesday that his troops could only operate within the subway system if they were embedded with police.
Asked Wednesday why she wasn't deploying additional state or MTA police officers, Hochul said the troops projected safety.
"Fear is a really powerful emotion," Hochul said, referencing newspaper coverage of subway crime. "When someone sees an individual, one of these trained professionals, standing there, I can tell you -- as a mom and as someone who talks to a lot of people around here -- they feel better knowing there's a strong, solid presence that's going to protect them."
"This is about a presence," she continued. "But if there's a problem, I guarantee they know how to handle it."
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