If you look at NYC's mayoral timeline, you'll see David Dinkins ahead of him for just one term, 90-94.

In my opinion, he was the real solver of our crime issues, as besides the overall economy starting to escape the republican shitstorm of Reaganomics, we started the PAL program (Police Athletic League) and used some anti-crime money to keep schools open later.

This is a key point here, most crime was being committed by bored young men of school age, so instead of letting them out at 3 till their parent(s) got off work, PAL and other after-school programs let them hang out with friends, shoot basketball or take fun classes, etc. People had the ability to stay out of trouble a lot more easily, and for free.

First year of Dinkins, homicide peaks. Then it starts trending sharply down, statistics backed by the first ever computerized crime ledger, compstat. That first year made everyone think Dinkins was ineffective, so Giuliani got his shot. But all Giuliani did was coast on Dinkins work, besides posting cops in visible places like MTA turnstiles.

I really want to write a long screed about how shitty of a mayor who couldn't win a single lawsuit Giuliani was, but I think airing out how much better his precessor was would hurt his image even more.

But I'll say this: that whole nightclub scene NYC used to be famous for? Killed by Giuliani. There were nightclubs where you were in shoulder-high bubbles, dancing or more if you wanted. Famous places too, that one spot in the east village that was a bankrupt church, converted into a goth nightclub.. just memories because of a Catholic fuckhead banned Giuliani.