Posted on 11/05/19
| News Source: Vosizneias.com
NEW YORK (VosIzNeias) — NYPD Commissioner James O’Neill submitted his resignation on Monday with a smile. Publicly he stated that he was moving on to accept a position in public sector that he couldn’t pass off.
Privately he wore a different face. According to a report by the New York Post Commissioner O’Neill fumed while warning that soft-on-crime measures at the city and state levels threaten to undo the best efforts of the NYPD.
“It’s only gonna get worse,” O’Neill repeatedly said in the weeks before his resignation, referring to initiatives such as Raise the Age and bail reform.
Raise the Age lets many 16 and 17-year-old suspects avoid being charged as adults — and bail reforms taking effect next year will see more suspects released pending trial for crimes including non-violent felonies.
“I came into this job with one mission, and that was to fight crime and keep everybody safe,” said O’Neill, during a City Hall press briefing. “And we did it, and we continue to do it.”
At 62 years of age, James O’neill will continue at his position until the end of the month. When he exits, current NYPD Chief of Detectives Dermot Shea will fill his position. Shea’s successor was not immediately announced.
“I’m gonna miss it,” said O’Neill referring to his years with the NYPD. “I love being a cop.”
In the course of pursuing law and order while simultaneously pleasing City Hall officials, O’neil often found himself caught in a tough spot.
This was most recently displayed in the firing of Officer Daniel Pantaleo, the Staten Island cop involved in the death of Eric Garner in 2014. Pantaleo was ultimately fired by O’neil, which out him at odds with many within the department.
Sergeants Benevolent Association President Ed Mullins reacted to the firing with a scathing statement. “Like any coward, Commissioner O’Neill chose to run off before the entire empire falls,” said Mullins in a statement. “I believe he will go down as the worst Police Commissioner in NYPD history.”
Despite that, O’neil isn’t too worried about his legacy.
“I’m not particularly concerned about my legacy,” he said. “I think that all the work that we all do together, the executive staff and 54,000 members of the New York City Police Department, I think that speaks for itself.”