Bruce Blakeman's bid for New York governor rests on a central claim: that he transformed Nassau County into the safest in America by hiring 600 new law enforcement officers. That assertion is false, according to Jackie Rowe Adams, a Harlem-based anti-violence advocate who has spent decades working to reduce gun violence in New York communities.
The factual record tells a different story. Nassau County earned its "safest county" designation before Blakeman took office, and there is no evidence supporting his claim of hiring 600 new officers. In reality, Nassau County employs fewer police officers today than when Blakeman assumed his position. Between 2021 and 2024, the county saw serious offenses—including murder, rape, robbery, aggravated assault, and burglary—rise 28 percent. Violent crime increased 18 percent and property crime jumped 29 percent.
The trend in homicides is particularly stark. Nassau County's murder rate has increased every year since 2022, even as statewide murder rates have declined. This data directly contradicts Blakeman's positioning as an authority on public safety, Rowe Adams argues.
Rowe Adams, who lost two sons to gun violence, has worked alongside law enforcement and community leaders to develop public safety solutions rooted in her direct experience on Harlem's streets. She characterizes Blakeman's approach as aligned with Trump-style policies, noting his support for arming private citizens with minimal training and no accountability, as well as his effort to roll back New York's gun safety laws.
The advocate counters with a different vision of crime reduction: lowering community tensions, funding violence intervention programs, supporting law enforcement training, implementing stricter regulations on ghost guns and homemade machine guns, and addressing the underlying causes of crime. These measures, she contends, represent the unglamorous but effective work that actually saves lives—work her organization has pursued for years in Harlem communities.
