Editorial: The blame for New Orleans’ crime decline belongs to many | Our views

Louisianans can be forgiven for becoming accustomed to frequent negative reports about New Orleans’ crime problem.

But this year it was different. New Orleans has seen a dramatic drop in crime, and this newspaper addressed the trend in a recent article. They found that the decline in crime in New Orleans actually exceeds the decline in crime across the country. Homicides are down nearly 40% in New Orleans, compared to 23% nationwide. In New Orleans, non-fatal shootings have fallen by nearly half, numbers show.

These numbers are obviously cause for celebration, not just in New Orleans, but across the state. Like it or not, New Orleans is the lens through which many outsiders view Louisiana, and visits to New Orleans drive the tourism sector and contribute to efforts to attract new businesses here.

The drop couldn’t have come at a better time. With the arrival of fall, tourism season in New Orleans is in full swing. The city is preparing to welcome global star Taylor Swift for a series of concerts later this month and then the Super Bowl in February. These and the countless smaller festivals and events in New Orleans during the winter will certainly bring a lot to our state.

The discount cannot only be credited to one project or agency. Efforts to address the problem have come from a variety of angles, from agencies and stakeholders, some of whom are not natural partners. For example, the Louisiana State Police’s Nola Troop works closely with the NOPD, a union that seemed unthinkable just a year or so ago. The addition of additional police on the streets and new technologies, including drone surveillance and cameras from the nonprofit Project NOLA, have spurred the trend, experts said.

There were also concerted efforts by health workers and community groups to intervene in situations leading to violence and to treat those affected by violence. For example, the Trauma Recovery Center at University Medical Center uses funding from the City of New Orleans to provide mental health services to those affected by violence. The nonprofit Ubuntu Village runs a violence interrupter program and provides case management in the community.

Citizens seem to accept. Crimestoppers has received a record number of tips and crime arrest rates have increased despite the number of crimes falling.

Above all, the efforts in New Orleans show that reducing crime is not the result of just one program. Instead, improving the city is the result of a multi-faceted, multi-level approach that involves collaboration between a range of agencies, political leaders and groups.

We hope that other communities across Louisiana will take note of New Orleans’ progress and perhaps seek to find ways to transfer these methods to their own communities.

There is still a lot to do. New Orleans hasn’t solved its crime problem, but it has improved. Those involved should be proud. For once, New Orleans is on the positive side of a national crime statistic.