The NYPD’s newly appointed commissioner, Jessica Tisch, has quietly launched a search within the department, reversing the unauthorized transfers of hundreds of on-duty police officers whose whereabouts were not properly cleared.
On December 9, the same day that news of suspect Luigi Mangione being arrested in the fatal shooting of UnitedHealthcare CEO dominated headlines, Tisch’s subordinates issued an internal memo, which was obtained by Gothamist, highlighting more than 500 “improper transfers” or reassignments without official approval or paperwork, and set a Dec. 13 deadline for the officers to return to their assigned posts.
“This practice, commonly referred to as ‘telephone message transfers,’ has always been unauthorized and results in the department’s inability to appropriately account for staffing and ensure sufficient manpower for operational matters,” the memo said.
The directive, which also banned the practice of transferring without clearance, stating it leads to slower response times to emergencies, represents one of Tisch’s first significant administrative moves in organizing a department that has faced issues with stability and leadership during Mayor Eric Adams’ administration.
As of November, department personnel data showed the headcount of officers was just under 33,400, the lowest since 1990, when there were 32,451. Amid this staffing count, the time it takes for police to respond to 911 calls was reported to be up, with response times rising from around 10 minutes to more than 15 minutes for crimes in progress since 2019, according to city data.
”The whole issue here is that unfortunately the department is significantly short-staffed,” former NYPD Commissioner Bill Bratton said. “ My assumption is that what they’re looking for are people who are not in critical assignments, those temporary assignments that can be returned back to patrol and operational duties.”
Tisch, a 43-year-old heir of a billionaire family that co-owns the New York Giants, has spent the last three years as the city’s sanitation commissioner, earning a reputation for being a firm technocrat who has upheld the mayor’s priorities of promoting the city’s war on rats, expanding composting, and rolling out a program to put trash on the street in containers. Despite her experience, Adams’ appointment of Tisch has still been met with some skepticism from inner police circles.
At a community forum on Monday, the mayor expressed support for Tisch’s move to reverse the improper transfers.
“We need an all-hands-on-deck. You have a gun, a shield, you’re not dealing with a medical issue. You need to be back on patrol. Everyone needs to be back on patrol so that we don’t have shortages of police personnel. I want my people in the precincts. That is what Commissioner Tisch is going to do,” he said. “Cops are masters, as good as they are at fighting crime, they’re masters at hiding out somewhere. We got to find them. Go desk by desk, unit by unit, and say, ‘What are you doing?’”
The memo issued to all police commands came less than two weeks after the Department of Investigation issued a report highlighting improper transfers to the NYPD’s Community Response Team. According to the report, the unit, which is a key crime fighting initiative under Adams that been designed to crack down on illegal vendors, ATV riders and ghost cars, lacked written policies, procedures and a mission statement. The precise number of officers in the citywide unit also remains unclear.
Tisch is said to have long sought to serve as the city’s top cop. Yet, her appointment makes her the fourth NYPD commissioner in just three years. Adams’ first commissioner, Keechant Sewell, resigned less than two years into the job after speaking out about sexism. Her successor, Edward Caban, resigned after the FBI seized his phones in connection with a reported investigation into his twin brother’s nightlife consulting business. Adams then appointed an interim commissioner, former FBI official Tom Donlon, whose home was raided by federal authorities, and reported the visit was related to a search for classified information.
