Founded in 1961, the Vera Institute of Justice is a

justice change agent. We work to tackle the most

pressing injustices of our day—from ending mass
criminalization and incarceration, addressing
racial disparities, reckoning with the loss of public
confidence in our justice systems, to meeting the
needs of justice-involved people who are
vulnerable and marginalized.
The crisis of over-policing
4,400 calls to 911 each day in New York City

172,512 arrests made each year

13% in New York City are for crimes of violence

Crime is on a steady decline, with arrests down 17.% in 5 years

85% of summonses issued last year for conduct not even

considered a crime were to Black and Latinx New Yorkers
1,254 Black people have been shot and
killed by the police since 2015.
In every arrest lies the threat of
escalation, injury, and death.
Three steps to less violence
Debunk the “few bad apples” myth

Fundamentally overhaul policing by shrinking police budgets

and taking away the tasks that police shouldn’t do

Reinvest that money into the resources and services that

make us truly safe
Questions? Comments?

Insha Rahman
Director of Strategy & New Initiatives
irahman@vera.org
(646) 284-8221