Retired NYPD Sgt: 'Palpable Fear' Amid NYC 'Disorder,' 'Decay'

Crime data is often reliant on actually making arrests to record data on lawbreakers, but retired NYPD Sgt. Pete Panuccio says there is a "palpable fear" for New Yorkers on the streets amid the "disorder" and "decay."

Democrat-run cities, often maligned by Republicans for being crime-infested, are hailing declining crime rates since 2020, but the reality on the ground in New York City belies that data, according to Panuccio.

"There's a sense of disorder, a sense of decay, and what I like to call palpable fear," Panuccio told Fox News. "Those are things you can't quantify, but people are scared again."

Crime rates are still higher than the pre-COVID pandemic levels of 2019, according to the report.

"People are scared to go out on the street late at night," Panuccio added.

Maligned New York City Mayor Eric Adams, who has been forced to admit illegal immigration will "destroy" his sanctuary city and has recently rebuked the Biden administration's open border for inundating his city, touted crime-rate reductions earlier this month in a Jan. 3 address to his city.

He touted a 12% drop in homicides and a 25% decrease in shootings from 2022 to 2023.

"New Yorkers are breathing easier," Adams said.

But Panuccio said it is because people are avoiding going outside to be shot or killed, according to the report.

"You can play numbers games all day long, which city hall is very fond of," Panuccio said. "If you compare it to 2019, the crime jump is staggering.

"There's a sense of disorder, a sense of decay, and what I like to call palpable fear. Those are things you can’t quantify."

While homicides were down in '23 from '22, they were still 21% higher than 2019, according to the NYPD.

Also up are:

Robberies 26%
Felony assaults 35%
Motor vehicle thefts nearly triple

NYC's "numbers are garbage," according to Panuccio. "People are scared. You can't attach a number to that."

The crime-ridden 1980 in New York City were curbed by former Mayor Rudy Giuliani's administration, so new leadership can turn things around, Panuccio noted.

"The No. 1 issue, and what saved New York City in the '90s, was public safety," he concluded to Fox News. "Everything emanates from public safety in New York City. If we don't have public safety, we don't have a city.

"New York City's a captive city, captured by the progressives. A lot of people gave their lives to make this city a safer place. It's all been washed away."