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As he enters his final weeks in office, Gov. Phil Murphy on Tuesday touted a decline in crime across New Jersey.

Speaking at a court and police building in East Rutherford, Murphy said there were 559 shooting victims statewide last year, a 28% decline compared to the previous year.

Of the 559 victims, 107 were fatalities.

At the start of his term, more than 1,300 people were shot annually, Murphy said. The 2025 reduction marks the fourth consecutive year of declines in gun violence injuries.

“That’s not to say we are perfect,” Murphy said. “Because the objective is to get it down to zero.”

Motor vehicle thefts also dropped in 2025 — from 15,041 to 13,693 — according to New Jersey State Police statistics. That was a 9% decrease.

Murphy signed legislation in July 2023 that increased criminal penalties for auto theft offenders, focusing on repeat offenses and large-scale automobile trafficking.

“While there is more work to be done, this moment underscores the strength of the tools, practices and initiatives that have been put in place during the Murphy administration to protect residents and support lasting public safety across our state,” Lt. Gov. Tahesha Way said.

State Attorney General Matthew Platkin attributed the decline in crime to treating gun violence as a public health issue.

“That happened because of a sustained commitment to treating gun violence like the public health crisis it is,” Platkin said.

Platkin also cited drops in shootings in New Jersey’s largest cities, including Paterson, which saw a state police takeover after a corruption scandal. Shootings in the city fell to 42 last year from 127 the year before, he said.

Newark Mayor Ras Baraka said his city also saw historic lows in shootings and murders, with killings dropping to 31 last year, a 19% decrease from the previous year.

“Even as we laud our accomplishments, and we have many to talk about, we still have people who have been victimized in our city,” Baraka said last week.

State officials lauded local gun violence interruption groups as integral to the reduction.

“These groups are doing good and important work,” Platkin said.

Murphy said the coalitions often engage communities in ways law enforcement cannot.

“They’re on the streets, they know the community unlike any of us,” Murphy said. “They know it better than law enforcement. They know it better than elected officials.”

New Jersey’s acting State Police superintendent, Lt. Col. David Sierotowicz, said the reduction in crime was the result of collaboration between multiple government agencies and community partnerships.

“These reductions in crime represent more than statistics — they represent lives saved,” Sierotowicz said.

Police shot and killed a knife-wielding suspect outside a home in Piscataway, where three people were later found dead, according to the New Jersey Attorney General’s Office.

The incident occurred near the intersection of Mitchell Avenue and River Road. Police responded to the scene after receiving a 911 call from a man reporting that someone was inside the home with a knife. Upon arrival, officers saw the suspect on the porch holding a knife.

The man, whose identity has not been released, fled from the porch, leading to a foot chase that ended when the suspect charged at the officers, according to law enforcement sources. Police attempted to subdue the suspect with Tasers, but they were ineffective, sources told News 4.

After the suspect continued to advance toward the police, the responding officers fatally shot him in the street.

“They told him to stop several times; they gave him commands to stop,” said Jessica Conroy, a resident of the area.

Following the shooting, officers discovered three other deceased individuals inside the home. The Middlesex County Prosecutor’s Office is investigating their deaths.

“This is a really nice neighborhood,” Conroy told NBC New York. “I never saw anything bad at the other house.”

The identities of the civilians and officers involved have not yet been released.

The police investigation is ongoing.