Byrne Criminal Justice Innovation
New York, New York
BCJI Funding Year: FY2021
BCJI Awardee: Fund for the City of New York, The Center for Court Innovation
Research Partner: N/A
Focus Area: Bronx Community District 3, the South Bronx
Challenges: Violent Crime, Neighborhood Safety, Drugs, Institutional Mistrust
Note: As of Fiscal Year 2020, the Community-Based Crime Reduction (CBCR) Grant has been renamed the Byrne Criminal Justice Innovation (BCJI) Grant. Grantee sites from Fiscal Years 2018 and 2019 were onboarded under the CBCR name, while those from Fiscal Years 2020 and 2021 were onboarded under the BCJI name.
Neighborhood Characteristics
The South Bronx is a vibrant and diverse area with an important cultural legacy. It is inhabited by proud, passionate community members who have been there for generations and recent immigrants, all committed to the neighborhood. The South Bronx also has a legacy of youth leadership in community improvement and violence reduction, including the historic Hoe Avenue Peace Meeting, a youth-led peace treaty between South Bronx youth gangs in 1971. From movements for environmental justice to support for technology entrepreneurship, the South Bronx community continues to innovate and develop to overcome its historical challenges.
Bronx District 3 (CD 3) is geographically separated from the rest of the Bronx on two sides by major highways. Before the COVID-19 pandemic, Bronx CD 3 was one of the few areas in New York City experiencing a rise in violent crime, as the city saw a steep reduction overall. It also has one of the highest incarceration rates, with 1,243 individuals incarcerated per 100,000 residents compared to a city-wide rate of 425. Additionally, Bronx CD 3 has the highest rate of arrests in public parks and playgrounds in the Bronx, demonstrating a need for place-based interventions. Bronx CD 3 has more than double the rate of drug-related hospitalizations than the city, and drug-related causes are the third leading cause of premature death in Bronx CD 3.
After experiencing the most significant population decline in the borough during the 1970s and 80s at the height of disinvestment, violence, and the “crack epidemic,” Bronx CD 3 has had the highest population growth in the borough over the past two decades. Between 1980 and 2010, the district’s population increased by more than 50 percent, which has put considerable stress on public services and neighborhood infrastructure. In recent years, Bronx CD 3 has seen an increase in housing development and new industry as gentrification inches closer to the neighborhood. Despite this, Bronx CD 3 faces one of the highest concentrations of poverty in the Bronx and the city overall, with a poverty rate of 31 percent compared to 25 percent borough-wide. In 2018, the unemployment rate was 16 percent, compared to 9 percent city-wide, increasing considerably due to the current public health crisis. Bronx CD 3 has been devastated by the intersecting crises of COVID-19, economic distress, and gun violence. Bronx CD 3 has the second highest rates of COVID-19 cases, hospitalizations, and deaths in the borough.
Several New York City Housing Authority (NYCHA) public housing developments exist in Bronx CD 3. Ongoing “beefs” and violence occur between groups of primarily young people who live in different developments. Older gangs and a youth culture of violent robberies driven by the underground music scene and social media have exacerbated gang tensions and increased retaliatory shootings in the area. Residents of the Bronx CD 3 identified the need to dismantle historical policies and policing tactics of the 1990s, 2000s, and 2010s to enhance community-police relationships that will help address crime and violence. Though the New York Police Department is implementing new tactics and strategies to achieve this goal, there is still much room for improvement to increase community trust.
Planning Phase
The Center will implement a 6-month planning period during which project staff will review and confirm chronic focus areas, identify micro-focus areas, engage cross-sector partners, and engage community residents in data review and planning. The Center seeks to complete the following objectives:
Build upon the Initial Action Plan, review and verify chronic crime focus areas in the target neighborhood, working with law enforcement, research partners, and crime analysts. Identify micro-focus areas or specific locations for targeted prevention or intervention strategies.
Update and confirm the most effective strategies to reduce serious and violent crime, resulting in a comprehensive Action Plan articulating the range of strategies the BCJI partners plan to pursue.
Engage community stakeholders in trust-building with law enforcement and other partners.
Other Key Partners
Bronx County District Attorney, Mayor’s Office of Neighborhood Safety, Children’s Aid
This project is supported by Cooperative Agreement No. 2018-BJ-BX-K035 awarded by the Bureau of Justice Assistance, Office of Justice Programs, U.S. Department of Justice. The opinions contained herein are those of the author(s) and do not necessarily represent the official position or policies of the U.S. Department of Justice. References to specific agencies, companies, products, or services should not be considered an endorsement by the author(s) or the U.S. Department of Justice. Rather, the references are illustrations to supplement discussion of the issues.
