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Friday, March 29, 2024

NYPD Commish James O’Neill Resigns; Replaced by Chief of Detectives Dermot Shea

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By: Liz Klagstein

New York City Police Commissioner James O’Neill resigned Monday after three years as the head of the nation’s largest police force. “I came into this job with one mission: to fight crime and keep everybody safe,” O’Neill said. “We did it and continue to do it.”

O’Neill, 61, had been an NYPD officer for over 30 years before assuming the position as commissioner in September of 2016. His three year tenure began with a pipe bomb exploding in Manhattan’s Chelsea neighborhood on his first day.

He also saw the department through two other terror attacks: The Halloween truck attack on the West Side and the detonation of a pipe bomb beneath the Port Authority Bus Terminal, according to a WABC News story.

O’Neill paid tribute to the families of officers who died in the line of duty during his tenure.

“This is not an easy job, the job of police officers,” he said.

“This is a safer city and fairer city,” Mayor Bill deBlasio said in crediting O’Neill for transforming the police department to one focused on neighborhood policing that brought officers closer to the communities they serve.

WABC News reported that O’Neill moved the department away from the controversial “broken windows” theory of law enforcement, which viewed low-level offenses as a gateway to bigger crimes.

Mayor DeBlasio announced that Dermot Shea will be the next Commissioner of the New York Police Department.

Shea began his service as a police officer in 1991, a year New York City faced more than 2,000 murders, and rose through the ranks to become Chief of Detectives, where he has overseen the criminal investigations in the city in addition to targeted efforts to prevent crime from happening.

As the next Police Commissioner, Shea will apply precision policing and Neighborhood Policing to target gang-related violence, take guns off the streets and continue the city’s remarkable reduction in crime. He will take office on December 1st.

“Dermot Shea is a proven change agent, using precision policing to fight crime and build trust between police and communities. As Chief of Crime Control Strategies and then Chief of Detectives, Dermot was one of the chief architects of the approach that has made New York City the safest big city in America. Dermot is uniquely qualified to serve as our next Police Commissioner and drive down crime rates even further,” said de Blasio. “On behalf of all New Yorkers, I want to express deep gratitude to Jimmy O’Neill for dedicating his entire career to keeping our city safe. Jimmy transformed the relationship between New Yorkers and police, and helped to make the Department the most sophisticated and advanced in the country.”

“Dermot Shea has exactly the experience and skill to continue to drive down crime, strengthen relationships with the community members we serve and make sure every neighborhood has the safety they deserve,” said Police Commissioner James P. O’Neill. “We cannot take the historic crime reductions in New York City for granted, and Dermot’s understanding of the complex issues that lead to crime and disorder, as well as the most effective strategies for addressing these issues, is as good as it gets in policing today.”

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