The New York City Police Department will eliminate its plainclothes anti-crime units and will transfer those personnel to detective assignments and neighborhood policing, said NYPD Commissioner Dermot Shea…
The New York City Police Department will eliminate its plainclothes anti-crime units and will transfer those personnel to detective assignments and neighborhood policing, said NYPD Commissioner Dermot Shea on Monday.
“Thankfully, here in New York City, angry demonstrations have turned peaceful. Thoughtful discussions about reform have emerged,” Shea said during a news conference, adding that it will affect about 600 officers.
“We welcome reform, but we also believe that meaningful reform starts from within,” he told reporters.
Shea noted that the move is “not without risk,” questioning whether the decision would result in fewer guns being taken off the streets of New York City. But he said the risk rests “squarely on my shoulders.”
The move comes after sometimes violent demonstrations including arson, riots, and vandalism in the wake of George Floyd’s death in Minneapolis police custody, which reignited the Black Lives Matter protest movement.
