NYC Residents To Interview, Oversee NYPD Precinct Leaders

   Mayor Bill de Blasio announced that starting today, police precinct councils will be interviewing candidates for precinct commander roles and overseeing their performance. 

     “When a precinct commander spot comes open,” the mayor explained, “the department will provide to the police precinct council in that area three-to-five candidates: Folks who are ready to serve and lead and who represent the diversity of this city.”

     Then, the precinct council will interview the precinct commander candidates and provide feedback to the commissioner, who will provide an ultimate decision on whom to hire. Going forward, the precinct council will oversee the performance of the new leaders to make sure that they are taking over effectively.

    “The precinct council will have an ongoing role,” which the mayor said was unprecedented in the hiring of police officers in New York City, “in evaluating the work as that precinct commander goes through the important tasks of making the community safe and bringing the larger community in [to the process.]

    “We are bringing the voices of the community forward to determine who would be the right leader and that is going to help in a myriad of ways. This is going to improve dialogue, accountability. It is going to give folks a real sense of buy-in. I think it is going to improve the work on the ground and deepen that bond.”

   At his press conference, the mayor thanked Brooklyn Borough President Eric Adams, who served in the NYPD for 20 years, for the idea to “bring the precinct commander’s selection process into the sunlight.”

      Adams, who the mayor said cares deeply about changing the culture of policing, commended the mayor for “heeding his call.”        

     “Our communities deserve a role in choosing the leadership that has so much power in ensuring officers are doing their jobs well and doing them fairly. To achieve the local oversight and accountability we seek, we need to build a strong foundation of engagement move toward greater civilian empowerment. I hope this is the beginning of further reforms to deliver that empowerment.

    “We need New Yorkers affected by crime to be empowered and competent to work with the NYPD to get the bad guys while protecting everyone else’s civil rights.”