Overview: Mayor-elect Zohran Mamdani has retained NYPD Commissioner Jessica Tisch, providing leadership continuity for nearly 35,000 officers as the department reports significant declines in shootings and homicides. Officials credit data-driven policing and a summer surge of up to 2,300 officers for reductions that include 674 shootings (as of Dec. 21) and 297 homicides year-to-date. Critics caution that issues remain — notably the Strategic Response Group, the gang database, and rising reports of rape — and that retention and morale are ongoing challenges. Tisch has launched consultations with rank-and-file officers as the new administration outlines reforms focused on serious crime and community-based prevention.
NYPD Stability Amid Change: Mayor-Elect Keeps Commissioner Tisch as Shootings and Homicides Fall
New York Mayor-elect Zohran Mamdani, seen here at a press conference on December 9, has signaled a softening in his past critical stance of the NYPD by virtue of keeping Commissioner Jessica Tisch on the job. - Kylie Cooper/Reuters
A reform-minded mayor is taking charge in New York City at a moment when the nation’s largest police force appears to be stabilizing. Commissioner Jessica Tisch will remain at the helm of the New York Police Department under Mayor-elect Zohran Mamdani, providing continuity for nearly 35,000 uniformed personnel after Tisch became the fourth commissioner to serve during the scandal-plagued Adams administration.
Continuity and Leadership
Since assuming command, Tisch halted controversial promotion and transfer practices and brought back several respected former NYPD executives to strengthen her senior team. Her continued tenure has reassured business leaders, some political figures and many in law enforcement, although questions remain about certain tools and tactics the department uses.
An NYPD crime scene investigator collects a shell casing where a shooting occurred in the Crown Heights neighborhood of Brooklyn, New York, on August 17. - James Carbone/Newsday RM via Getty Images
Crime Trends and the Department’s Strategy
City and NYPD officials credit a mix of data-driven policing and targeted deployments for notable year-over-year reductions in violent incidents. The department reported 674 shootings as of Dec. 21 — roughly a 24% decline from the previous year — and 297 homicides so far, down nearly 21%. NYPD leaders say these declines reflect a summer violence-reduction plan that deployed up to 2,300 officers in 72 zones across 59 communities, along with expanded foot patrols and interagency intelligence sharing.
“For the first 11 months of the year, New York City had the lowest number of shooting incidents and victims in recorded history,” Commissioner Tisch said, attributing gains to a “precision policing strategy.”
Chief of Department Michael LiPetri highlighted the role of granular data analysis — a density-based clustering tool — and increased foot patrols, especially on weekends when violent incidents tend to spike. The department also launched a Quality of Life Division to respond to more than 530,000 nonemergency 311 calls, which NYPD officials say cut response times for those complaints.
Newly commissioned New York City police officers attend a New York City Police Academy graduation ceremony at Madison Square Garden on August 6. - Anthony Behar/Sipa USA via AP
Lingering Questions and Criticism
Despite the positive crime metrics, unresolved concerns remain over operational practices. Officials and advocates continue to debate the future of the Strategic Response Group (the NYPD’s crowd-control unit), the use of the gang database, and whether some tactics resemble a return to “broken windows” policing. Critics point to rising reports of rape (up about 16%) and a slight increase in felony assault as reminders that progress is uneven across crime categories.
Recruitment, Retention and Morale
The NYPD reported hiring more than 4,000 new officers in 2025 — its largest single-year hiring drive — bringing sworn strength to about 34,700. Still, the Police Benevolent Association (PBA) notes that more than 3,400 members have left or filed to retire in the past 12 months, and morale remains a concern. Tisch has reached out to rank-and-file officers for feedback on modernizing the department, launching focus groups and surveys to examine everything “from police work to paperwork.”
NYPD Commissioner Jessica Tisch departs a press conference in Manhattan on July 28. "Our plan is working, and the progress is real,” she says. - Bing Guan/Reuters
Meanwhile, smaller police departments and federal agencies have publicly tried to recruit NYPD officers amid political uncertainty surrounding the incoming mayor. Some recruitment campaigns have amplified fears about potential policy shifts, while others highlight career or quality-of-life incentives offered by outside agencies.
What Comes Next
Mamdani has signaled a willingness to work with Tisch while pursuing reforms such as a proposed Department of Community Safety focused on community-based prevention for homelessness and mental health. Both leaders say they will emphasize concentrating police resources on serious and violent crime while exploring changes in civilian oversight and prevention-focused programs.
Mamdani and Tisch meet with NYPD officers during their visit to the New York City Police Memorial on November 19. - Richard Drew/Pool/Getty Images
As the new administration and NYPD leadership coordinate, the immediate priorities will be sustaining downward crime trends, addressing pockets of rising crime, resolving debates over specific policing tools, and improving morale and retention among officers.
CNN contributors: Jeff Winter and Gloria Pazmino.
