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North The Indian Eye

AMERICANNewsline

16 APRIL 05, 2024

MAYOR ADAMS, NYPD COMMISSIONER CABAN TO

PILOT NEW TECHNOLOGY, ANNOUNCE ADDITIONAL

CLINICIANS TO BE DEPLOYED IN SUBWAYS

City to Begin Hiring Clinicians to Support Expansion of SCOUT Pilot Program to Help

Untreated Severe Mental Illness with $20 Million State Investment

OUR BUREAU increase from the previous year, when
947 total weapons were seized, includ-
NEW YORK, NY
ing 912 cutting instruments and 35 guns.
ew York City Mayor Eric Last month, Mayor Adams di-
Adams and New York City rected the NYPD to surge an addi-
NPolice Department (NYPD) tional 1,000 police officers into the
Commissioner Edward A. Caban subway system each day to keep help
have announced efforts being taken New Yorkers safe. Additionally, ear-
to make the Metropolitan Transit lier this week, the NYPD announced
Authority’s (MTA) subway system “Operation Fare Play,” an initiative
safer by investing in new technology to ensure people pay their fare when
to detect firearms, as well as invest in entering the subway system by de-
more clinicians that will help those ploying 800 more police officers into
suffering from severe mental illness the subway system to crack down
in the nation’s largest subway system. on fare evasion. Through Sunday,
The city is exploring, and will soon be- overall crime in the transit system
gin piloting, emerging technologies was down nearly 16 percent for the
designed to detect weapons carried month of March, compared to the
by travelers into the transit system. In same month last year, adding to
accordance with the Public Oversight February’s 15.4 percent month-over-
of Surveillance Technology (POST) period to test electromagnetic weap- handling of repeat offenders by the month decrease in crime in the sub-
Act, the NYPD also published online ons detection systems here in New criminal justice system, and expand- way system. Since the start of 2024,
its Impact and Use Policy for electro- York City and hiring more clinicians ed resources for mental health,” said overall arrests in the subway system
magnetic weapons detection systems, for SCOUT, we are showing our ad- MTA Chair and CEO Janno Lieber. are up nearly 56 percent compared
starting a mandatory 90-day wait- ministration’s dedication to keeping “Thankfully, Mayor Adams and Gov- to last year, including a 78 percent
ing period before new technology all New Yorkers safe.” ernor Hochul get it and continue to increase in fare-evasion arrests and a
can be tested and used in New York “Since the start of my adminis- fight for the millions of people who 111 percent jump in gun arrests.
City. Additionally, Mayor Adams an- tration, Mayor Adams and I have rely on the transit system.” Launched in October 2023, the
nounced that the city will begin hiring worked together closely to keep the During the 90-day waiting period, SCOUT pilot program has operat-
clinicians to support the expansion of subways safe for all New Yorkers,” the NYPD will be working to identi- ed with two teams in the subways
the Subway Co-Response Outreach said New York Governor Kathy Ho- fy companies with proven expertise focused on connecting those with
Teams (SCOUT), a pilot program chul. “This month, I announced a in weapons detection technology. At untreated severe mental illness with
launched in partnership with the five-point plan to improve safety in the end of the waiting period, a pilot mental health support and long-term
state and the MTA to connect people the subways, including dedicating program will be instituted in some care. SCOUT teams are comprised
with untreated severe mental illness $20 million to expand the SCOUT subway stations where the NYPD of a clinician and two MTA police
in the subways to mental health treat- program, which will help more will be able to further evaluate the officers, and, in the 90 days of oper-
ment and care. New Yorkers receive the treatment equipment’s effectiveness. ation, the two teams have moved 90
“Keeping New Yorkers safe on they need. The new technology an- As of Sunday, March 24, 2024, individuals out of the subway system
the subway and maintaining confi- nounced today builds on our exist- NYPD officers have seized a total of and into care. Earlier this month,
dence in the system is key to ensuring ing commitments to place cameras 450 weapons — including 19 illegal Governor Hochul announced a $20
that New York remains the safest big throughout the system and will help guns — in the New York City tran- million investment to scale this pi-
city in America,” said Mayor Adams. law enforcement keep dangerous sit system this year, compared to 261 lot and bring the total number of
“Today’s announcement is the next weapons out of the system.” weapons — including nine guns — SCOUT teams to 10 by the end of
step in our ongoing efforts to keep “Riders have to feel safe when during the same period last year. The 2025. With this investment from the
dangerous weapons out of our transit riding the subways and that requires NYPD also seized 1,515 weapons in state, the city will begin hiring addi-
system and to provide greater men- innovation — new weapons detec- the subway system in 2023, including tional clinicians to support the ex-
tal health services for New Yorkers in tion technology, but also increased 1,470 cutting instruments and 45 il- pansion of SCOUT and reach even
crisis. By kicking off a 90-day waiting deployments of police, tougher legal firearms. That tally was a stark more New Yorkers in need of care.

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