According to a Suffolk County report, overall crime is down more than 6 percent from last year, but critics say the atmosphere in Suffolk communities paints a different picture.

Suffolk County Executive Steve Levy announced the statistics Tuesday. Violent crime is down more than 4.5 percent and property crime has dropped about 7 percent, Levy says.

Some residents, however, say fear of crime has not gone down in many neighborhoods and that gang violence remains a major problem.

Islip NAACP President Pastor Roderick Pearson says having more black and Hispanic officers in gang units would make a difference. Levy agrees there aren?t enough officers of color and says the department is working on that issue.