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Attorney General Matthew J. Platkin promised a reduction in crime in Paterson following the second-ever state takeover of a local police department in New Jersey's history.
So far, he's delivering.
Between Memorial Day and Labor Day -- a time when America's cities ordinarily suffer the most violence -- shootings in the Silk City plummeted by 41.2% compared with the same period last year, state officials reported.
In that time, Paterson has also had the fewest summer shooting victims in five years, they said.
Reported robberies decreased by nearly 38%. Aggravated assaults dropped by nearly 10.5%.
The numbers can be found here: Paterson CompStat Crime Data
Although the Paterson Police Department is loaded with honest, dedicated law enforcers, it's had more than its share of bad apples.
A number of city police officers in recent years have been charged with -- and some found guilty of -- beating and robbing mostly black men. Another was convicted of dealing drugs while in uniform from his patrol car during a period of what Platkin called “high-profile misconduct."
Six people have died in encounters with Paterson police over the past four years, the most in the state.
Then came an incident that lit a fuse in the proud city.
Paterson police called to deal with a man in the middle of a drug-induced mental health crisis found Najee Seabrooks, a respected and admired non-violence activist.
Seabrooks had made it his mission to convince gunshot victims not to seek revenge, something he hoped would reduce the number of those gunned down in New Jersey's third-largest city.
Seabrooks -- who was the one who actually called police -- was barricaded in a bathroom for nearly four hours before he emerged gripping two bloody knives.
Officers in tactical gear who had their weapons trained on him while trying to convince Seabrooks to surrender shot and killed him as he charged at them, video released by Platkin's office showed.
The city erupted in protest, with the dead man's survivors and others insisting that police were unfit to handle the situation properly and demanding to know why a mental health professional wasn't among the responders.
Videos of the fatal encounter can be found here: Paterson – Seabrooks Recordings
Platkin pointed out that police deployed various resources throughout the morning standoff, including crisis negotiators and the Emergency Response Team. A city Fire Department EMS unit also responded, along with an ambulance, he said.
A family member was brought to the apartment to speak to the trouble activist, as was a police sergeant whom Seabrooks had specifically requested, the attorney general said. The sergeant told him that he wasn't in any trouble and would be taken to the hospital to be evaluated.
Seabrooks cut himself with the knives, flooded the apartment with water, ignited a fire in the bathroom and tossed some kind of liquid in an officer's face, Platkin said.
The officers deployed more than a dozen sponge-tipped projectiles during the encounter, none of which subdued Seabrooks, he said.
Then came the fateful moment.
Platkin had seen enough.
New Jersey is the only state in America that gives its attorney general the authority to seize control of a local law enforcement agency. Platkin exercised that authority.
Within three weeks, he'd taken over the day-to-day operations of the Paterson Police Department.
The attorney general then put 25-year NYPD veteran Isa Abbassi in charge.
“Exercising control over the police department and bringing in nationally recognized police leadership is just the first of many steps we will take together to build a safer and more just city of Paterson,” Platkin explained at the time.
It's happened only once before in New Jersey, when then-Gov. Chris Christie disbanded the Camden Police Department, with mixed results, in 2013.
“Make no mistake: We will reduce crime in this city,” Platkin promised before this summer began. “And we will do it while restoring trust between residents and police. Those two goals go hand in hand. There is no safety without trust.”
SEE: 'No Safety Without Trust': AG Takes Over Paterson PD, Pledges Changes In Mental Crisis Policing
An increased police presence and direct communication with the community has improved overall safety in the city as fall approaches, Platkin said on Wednesday, Sept. 13. It's benefitted not only civilians but also the crime fighters themselves, he said.
Over the past few months, 29 people were reportedly shot, compared with 41 in the summer of 2019, 75 over that period in 2020 and 98 combined in the summers of '21 and '22, Platkin said.
Over that same period from 2020 to this year, "there was a 61.3% reduction in shooting victims accounting for 46 fewer people victimized by gun violence," he said.
“Our residents need to feel safe in their city,” Abbassi said. “The summer crime data is a great indicator [of that]. However, we must continue to drive down fear and disorder in Paterson while remaining focused on accountability and excellence.
"The women and men of the PPD have risen to the challenge and Patersonians are seeing the results," Abbassi said.
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