New York City has reached a major milestone in its fight against gun violence, with more than 1,000 illegal firearms seized from the streets in just the first two months of the year.

Mayor Eric Adams, alongside NYPD Commissioner Jessica S. Tisch, announced the achievement, bringing the total number of firearms removed since Adams took office to 20,700.

This significant law enforcement effort has contributed to a historic decline in shootings and homicides across the city.

According to officials, shootings have dropped by over 21%, while homicides are down by 26% compared to the same period last year.

“In the first two months of 2025, New York City saw the fewest number of shooting incidents in the city’s history, a 14.5 percent decline compared to the same period in 2024, and a major victory in our campaign to keep New Yorkers safe,” said Mayor Adams. “Every day, the brave men and women of the NYPD are out there doing this dangerous work – working to protect New Yorkers against violent, armed recidivists – and this year alone, they have already removed more than 1,000 illegal guns from city streets. When you deploy well-trained officers to the right areas, New Yorkers can see and feel the difference, and because of our steadfast focus on eradicating gun violence, New York City continues to be the safest big city in America.”

Commissioner Tisch echoed the mayor’s sentiments, emphasizing the NYPD’s commitment to crime reduction. “Across the city, we continue to break crime records and make our communities safer. We saw the lowest number of shootings in recorded history for the first two months of the year combined, and we’re down double-digits in major crimes,” she stated. “Today, we surpassed another milestone – seizing more than 1,000 illegal guns so far this year from our streets and subways. Each of these guns represents a potential tragedy averted and life saved.”

In February 2025 alone, shooting incidents decreased by 20.8%, following a 21.5% decline in January. This marks the lowest recorded level of shootings for the first two months of any year in NYC history.

Additionally, crime across all major categories has seen a steady decline. February 2025 recorded a 14.5% drop in overall major crime, marking the third consecutive month of double-digit decreases. This follows a 15.5% decrease in December 2024 and a 16.8% drop in January 2025, which was the largest one-month decrease since Mayor Adams took office.

The city has also intensified its efforts against untraceable firearms known as ghost guns. Since 2018, the number of ghost guns seized has surged, with over 1,400 ghost guns recovered since Adams assumed office. These weapons, which lack serial numbers and can be assembled from kits or 3D-printed components, pose a growing challenge to law enforcement. Mayor Adams has been at the forefront of advocating for stronger regulations on ghost guns. In July 2024, he joined Mayors Against Illegal Guns and Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg in urging the U.S. Supreme Court to uphold federal regulations requiring serial numbers and background checks for ghost gun components.

Mayor Adams’ administration has taken a multi-pronged approach to gun violence reduction. His “Blueprint to End Gun Violence,” released in January 2022, laid the foundation for targeted law enforcement and community-based interventions. Key initiatives include Neighborhood Safety Teams, launched in 2022 to focus on high-crime areas, The Gun Violence Prevention Task Force, a nearly $500 million investment in intervention and prevention efforts, and The Gun Violence Strategies Partnership, a multi-agency collaboration reviewing felony gun cases daily to ensure swift legal action.

Elected officials and law enforcement leaders praised the ongoing efforts to combat gun violence. Queens Borough President Donovan Richards Jr. remarked, “There are no gun manufacturers in New York City, but the evil scourge of gun violence has still cut short the lives of far too many New Yorkers.

My office will continue to work with our law enforcement, government, and community partners to close the iron pipeline, rid streets of illegal weapons, and keep families safe from senseless gun violence.” Brooklyn District Attorney Eric Gonzalez highlighted the impact on his borough: “Every illegal gun taken off the streets makes our city safer, and the NYPD’s success in removing illegal firearms is a major reason why Brooklyn saw record-low gun violence in 2024.”

Staten Island District Attorney Michael McMahon reinforced his office’s commitment: “We will continue to do all we can to remove these deadly weapons from our streets and ensure that the perpetrators of gun violence face serious consequences in the courtroom.”