Commissioning failure: Adams’ appointments aren’t making NYC saferBy Nicole Gelinas
July 16, 2023
Mayor Eric Adams won election for one reason: He was the only Democratic candidate to acknowledge New Yorkers’ public-safety fears.
Those fears are worsening, and Adams blames the media — overlooking one factor over which he has total control: the disastrous tenures of all three of his public-safety commissioners.
New York has three commissioners who oversee the uniformed workers whose job is public safety: police, fire and correction.
The mayor has sole power to appoint each commissioner.
How’s that working out?
With the murder level up 53% in the two years before he took office and felonies up 7%, Adams’ most important appointment, in early 2022, was his police commissioner.
He chose well: Keechant Sewell, a Queens native, was head of the Nassau County detectives.
She earned officers’ trust and respect and made gains in the city’s worst crimes: After the first half of this year, murders were down 12% compared with 2021, and shootings were down 34%.
Then she left, giving two weeks’ notice in mid-June.
Why she departed says a lot about Adams: Though he chose her, he wouldn’t let her do her job.
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Source:
https://nypost.com/2023/07/16/commissioning-failure-adams-appointments-arent-making-nyc-safer/
