Homicides in NYC drop significantly in 1st half of 2013

NEW YORK, June 29 (UPI) -- New York City records show a significant drop in the number of homicides in the first half of 2013 compared to 2012.

There were 154 homicides in the city from Jan. 1 through June 27, down from 202 during the same time period in 2012, The New York Times reported.

Police Commissioner Raymond W. Kelly Friday credited a new anti-gang strategy that focuses on suppressing retaliatory violence for much of the drop.

Kelly noted that last year the New York Police Department recorded the fewest homicides -- 419 -- since the department created a reliable method for compiling such data 50 years ago.

"In my business, in our business, this is miraculous. These are lives that are being saved," Kelly said.