This article is part three of Crisis in New York, a series examining the effects public policies have on the city’s already strained housing, law enforcement and drug services. Read parts one and two. 

NEW YORK CITY — A 39-year police veteran said New Yorkers live in fear, scared that brazen criminals will attack them on the subways or streets, even as city leaders boast decreases in crime. 

“There’s a sense of disorder, a sense of decay, and what I like to call palpable fear,” retired NYPD Sgt. Pete Panuccio told Fox News. “Those are things you can’t quantify, but people are scared again.”

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New York City leaders have touted crime reductions since the historically bloody 2020, which saw the most murders since 2011 among other violent crimes, according to New York City Police Department data. But Panuccio said a culture of lawlessness, which he blamed on permissive, progressive policies, exploded during the COVID-19 pandemic and has persisted ever since, leaving residents on edge as crime remains high. 

“People are scared to go out on the street late at night,” Panuccio said. 

Mayor Eric Adams touted crime reductions during a Jan. 3 public safety address, including a 12% drop in homicides and a 25% decrease in shootings between 2022 and 2023. He added that “New Yorkers are breathing easier” because of his administration’s efforts to reduce crime.

But Panuccio said those figures hide the real story and pointed to pre-pandemic crime levels.

“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.”

— Retired NYPD Sgt. Pete Panuccio

While crime has trended downward since the pandemic, some offenses are still much higher, including homicides, which were up 21% at the end of last year compared to 2019, according to NYPD data. Robberies and felony assaults have risen 26% and 35%, respectively, and motor vehicle thefts nearly tripled.

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More than two-thirds of New Yorkers said crime was a serious issue in their community and that they were concerned they would be the next victim of a crime, according to a Siena College Research Institute poll published in July. More than 40% felt threatened by a stranger’s behavior in public. 

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The city’s crime “numbers are garbage,” Panuccio said. “People are scared. You can’t attach a number to that.”

Panuccio joined NYPD in 1981, spending 25 years working in the detective bureau, plus a few in narcotics. But he became frustrated with New York’s progressive policies and retired July 30, 2020, after seeing social justice protests in the city devolve into riots with mass destruction and looting.

The long-time cop told Fox News the current culture of fear gripping the Big Apple reminds him of the 1980s, when crime was running rampant across the city at historic highs. 

“We clean the city up. We have a 20-year run,” Panuccio said. “Now we’re back to this sense that people feel like the streets are out of control again. People felt safe, but now people have fear again.”

One woman, Paula Gavioli, told the New York Post in July she was fleeing the Big Apple for New Jersey to escape the crime. She said she no longer felt safe without her pepper spray, which she keeps in her handbag at all times.

“Everything emanates from public safety in New York City. If we don’t have public safety, we don’t have a city.” 

— Panuccio

Another New York woman, Marjorie Mann, said she felt more uneasy about going on the subway or walking the streets alone.

“Being in public places feels more unsafe than ever before,” Mann told the NYP. “People seem like they’re looking for fights a little bit more than they used to. People seem angry and like they’re looking for an excuse to get it out.” 

Panuccio said he saw that same sense of terror in the crime-ridden ‘80s, but watched it subside over the course of the following decade when city officials got tough on crime during Republican Mayor Rudy Guiliani’s administration.

“The number one issue, and what saved New York City in the ’90s, was public safety,” he said. “Everything emanates from public safety in New York City. If we don’t have public safety, we don’t have a city.”

Panuccio accused progressive politicians of pushing soft-on-crime policies that have enabled criminals, fostered a culture of lawlessness and created the fear New Yorkers feel. He said real change won’t come until Democrats are out of power.

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

Adams’ office, in response to Fox News’ request for comment, noted that crime has decreased under his administration. Neither NYPD nor the New York City Council’s Progressive Caucus responded to requests for comment.