New York City Murder Rate 2012: NYPD Says Number Of Homicides This Year On Pace To Reach Historic Low

With less than a week left in 2012, the murder rate in New York city is still on track to reach its lowest level in over half a century.

NYPD data shows that as of this last weekend, 414 people in New York City had fallen victim to homicide in 2012, an 18.5% drop from 2011, when a total of 515 people were murdered.

By the time the ball drops in Times Square on December 31st, New York City will likely see its lowest murder rate since the early 60s.

(The murder rate this year is so low, it could happen that more people in NYC died of suicide this year, than of murder. For even more perspective: In 1990, 2,245 people were murdered in New York City.)

Overall crime for 2012, however, is on pace to increase in all five boroughs, The Wall Street Journal reports, an uptick the city hasn't experienced in 20 years.

The NYPD also stopped-and-frisked 30 percent fewer people this year, according to the latest statistics, while there were 8.5% less shooting incidents, and 10.2% less shooting victims.