Last year saw an absolutely horrifying number of kids shot in New York, yet this year the number grew higher still. And you can thank progressives’ heartless criminal-justice policies for this insane nightmare.

With the close of 2022, at least 149 kids under 18 have been shot for the year, at least 16 of them fatally. That’s up from 2021’s unforgivable number, 138.

The 2022 figure represents one of every 10 shooting victims in the city. Post readers already know some of their names.

• Angellyh Yambo, 16, killed by a stray near her Bronx high school.
• Keyaira Rattray-Brothers, 17, allegedly murdered by parolee Sundance Oliver in a shooting spree.

• Prince Shabazz, 14, ambushed while walking with his brother.

• Kyhara Tay, 11, killed outside a nail salon by bullets fired at someone else.

This year’s totals stand out even more amid the modest fall in the number of shootings from their pandemic-era peak, thanks largely to Mayor Eric Adams’ intense focus on public safety. 

Part of the problem is the endless beefs promoted by drill rap and the contagion of violence that spreads via social media, to say nothing of the easy availability of guns.

But they also serve as a stark reminder that, as long as progressives block fixes to the state’s disastrous no-bail and Raise the Age laws, these tragedies will continue. In 2017, before the pro-crime left won its signature bail-reform and other victories, 75 children were shot. The years since then have seen a near doubling. 

And this is typical of progressive policies: The lives of the most vulnerable are utterly expendable in pursuit of a misplaced goal of “equity.” Homicides of women and girls hit a multi-year high in 2022, even as some other crimes fell (the total as of mid-December was a hideous 74, a massive increase over 2021).

And, notably, the killings are concentrated among black and Hispanic New Yorkers, who last year made up some 90.7% of murder and non-negligent-manslaughter victims, as well as significant majorities across other major crime categories.

You can expect no meaningful changes on any of this unless Gov. Kathy Hochul exercises the full force of her gubernatorial powers to push major fixes through the Legislature, overcoming resistance from its leaders and the criminal-coddling leftists they cater to. This year, she punted twice on that: first during the legislative session in the spring, and then just this month when she failed to tie the legislative pay hikes to criminal-justice fixes.

Crime is top-of-mind for voters across race, economic and age groups in New York. That was made clear in the November election, which Hochul came closer to losing than any Democratic candidate for governor in years.  

So fixing New York’s criminal-justice laws is not only the right thing to do. It makes political sense, too. It would win voters’ hearts and minds and stave off future challenges from a hungry and newly energized GOP. 

Whether Hochul finds the will, and fortitude, for an ugly public fight with crime-loving leftists is an open question. Until she does, though, New York’s kids will continue to find themselves in the crosshairs — in sickening numbers. How do Albany legislators sleep at night?