The Crime Numbers Game：Management by Manipulation

In the mid-1990s, the NYPD created a performance management strategy known as Compstat. It consisted of computerized data, crime analysis, and advanced crime mapping coupled with middle management accountability and crime strategy meetings with high-ranking decision makers. While initially credited with a dramatic reduction in crime, questions quickly arose as to the reliability of the data. The Crime Numbers Game: Management by Manipulation brings together the work of two criminologists—one a former NYPD captain—who present the first in-depth empirical analysis of this management system—exposing the truth about crime statistics manipulation in the NYPD and the repercussions suffered by crime victims and those who blew the whistle on this corrupt practice.

Providing insider insight into a system shrouded in secrecy, this volume:



Documents and analyzes a wide array of data that definitively demonstrates the range of manipulation reflected in official New York City crime statistics
Explores how the consequences of unreliable crime statistics ripple throughout police organizations, affecting police, citizens, and victims
Documents the widening spell of police performance management throughout the world
Reviews current NYPD leadership approaches and offers alternatives
Analyzes the synchronicity of the media’s and the NYPD’s responses to the authors’ findings
Explores the implications of various theoretical approaches to Compstat
Offers a new approach based on organizational transparency


Presenting a story of police reform gone astray, this book stunningly demonstrates how integrity succumbed to a short-term numbers game, casting a cloud on the department from which we can only hope it will emerge.
For more information, check out the authors' blog, Unveiling Compstat, at blogspot.com and their website.

The Authors in the News
The authors' studies on crime were featured in a November 1, 2010 New York Times article and their comments were published on the editorial page. Their work was also cited in a November 30, 2010 Uptowner article about police manipulation of crime statistics.
Silverman and Eterno described a proposed strategy for improving community confidence in the integrity of crime statistics in a January 24, 2011 Daily News article.
On August 22, 2011, Eli Silverman commented on a recent rise in NYC crime statistics in a New York Post article.
On November 29, 2011, the Village Voice featured an article written by Silverman and Eterno on crime statistics manipulation and recent corruption scandals.Eli Silverman was interviewed by the Plainview Patch in a December 20, 2011 article about people's perception of crime in a community.
The book is cited in a February 23, 2012 Wall Street Journal article about a lawsuit filed by a NYPD officer.John Eterno was a featured guest on Talkzone Internet Talk Radio on February 25, 2012.
Eli Silverman spoke in a February 27, 2012 NY1 Online video about concerns regarding NYPD's stop and frisk policy.
The book was profiled in a February 27, 2012 article in The Chief, a weekly newspaper for New York civil service employees.
The authors appeared on a March 26, 2012 local ABC news program about underreported crime rates. thePolipit blog discussed the book on April 2, 2012.
John Eterno was quoted in an April 9, 2012 New York Times article about the NYPD's stop-and-frisk policy. Eli Silverman was quoted in a May 2, 2012 DNAinfo.com article about rising New York City crime rates.A New York Times Op-Ed piece referenced Eli Silverman on May 13, 2012.
John Eterno's Op-Ed piece entitled "Policing by the Numbers" appeared in the New York Times on June 17, 2012.
The book was cited in a June 19, 2012 Mother Jones article.
John Eterno was featured in a Reuters TV program about the NYPD's "stop and frisk" policy.

John A. Eterno, Ph.D., is professor, chairperson, and associate dean and director of graduate studies in criminal justice at Molloy College. He served as a sworn officer with the New York City police department (NYPD) and retired as a Captain. His various assignments included patrol, teaching at the police academy, conducting research, and commanding officer of several units. Notably, his research for the NYPD on physical standards won a prestigious Police Foundation award. He is also responsible for the research leading to increased age and education requirements for police officer candidates. He testified at the New York State Civil Service Commission and before the City’s Department of Citywide Administrative Services in this regard. His work on mapping with the NYPD also earned him the Enterprise Initiative Award from the New York City Mayor’s office.

Eli B. Silverman, Ph.D., is Professor Emeritus, John Jay College of Criminal Justice and the Graduate Center of City University of New York. He has previously served with the U.S. Department of Justice and the National Academy of Public Administration in Washington D.C. and was Visiting Exchange Professor at the Police Staff College in Bramshill, England. He has lectured, consulted with, and trained numerous police agencies in the United States, United Kingdom, Canada, Mexico, Europe, Asia, and Australia. His areas of interest include police performance management, community policing, policy analysis, training, integrity control, Compstat, and crime mapping.

Forewords by Sir Hugh Orde, OBE, QPM, President of the Association of Chief Police Officers for England, Wales and Northern Ireland and Commissioner Andrew Scipione, APM, New South Wales Police Force, Australia The Unusual Suspects Police under Arrest Numerical Performance: Distortions and Displacement Compstat Conversions Private Sector Performance Shortcomings Unraveling the Puzzle The NYPD’s Untold Story: Crime Report Manipulation Compstat Survey of Retirees Interviews Crime Victims Coming Forward Detective Harold Hernandez Hospital Data New York State Division of Criminal Justice Services Data Recently Released Historical Data The Letter of the Law NYPD Complaint Reports for Illegal Drug Use Admitted Problems with Manipulation by the NYPD andOther Jurisdictions Audiotapes Our Report Goes Public Performance Management: Pitfalls and Prospects Organizational–Managerial Consequences Field Operations Restrictions Societal Consequences Prospects for Reform Performance Management in New York City: The Use ofSymbolic Language Police Performance Management: The View from Abroad Performance Policing in the United Kingdom Australia France Big Bad Bully Bosses: Leadership 101The Unrelenting Pressures of NYPD Compstat Bullying Behaviors by Management Leadership NYPD and the Media: Curbing Criticism The Condemnations Understanding NYPD–Media Spin The Nature of Police–Media Interactions The NYPD and the Media: Political Ramifications Promoting Favorable Stories Suppressing Dissent Marginalizing Criticism Conclusion—Conflicting Forces Compstat: Underpinnings and Implications Broken Windows Theory and Compstat Limited versus Unlimited Government Transparency Social Science Theory and NYPD Compstat Specific Examples Silence Is Not An Option Lesson Learned Issues Chapter Ramifications Appendix Index