More of New York City’s police officers are reportedly rushing for the exit as crime plagues their communities.
The news comes on the heels of former New York Police Department (NYPD) Commissioner Keechant Sewell’s resignation, even though she would not say why she handed in her notice, NBC New York reported on June 14.
Meanwhile, a New York Post article published Saturday cited data regarding the officer exodus, stating that “Through June 30, 648 officers quit before retiring this year — a 22% spike from 2021, when 530 left, and an 87% rise from 2020, when 347 quit, NYPD pension data show.”
The decision to quit, along with NYPD’s recruiting issues, reportedly means the 34,000 officers are lacking over 1,000.
“Cops are being squeezed from every direction. They are working inhumane amounts of forced overtime. The brass is pushing for more enforcement, while the police-oversight complex is pushing to ruin more cops’ careers,” Police Benevolent Association President Patrick Hendry noted.
He said many officers cannot afford the risk because they are not being paid enough, and the NYPD needs to be more accommodating to those it already employs.
Officers usually stay on the job for 20 years to collect a pension, and the Post cited data that reportedly shows officers are burning through their accrued days off before quitting.
Hostility towards police officers, bail reform, and the crime wave have fueled the frustration among the police agency, the outlet said.
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Ben Von Klemperer via Storyful“The latest Finest exodus has been sparked by the ‘continued piling on’ by the City Council and police watchdogs, insiders told The Post,” it added.
Meanwhile, New York City police officers reportedly suffered 32 percent more injuries so far in 2023 than in 2022 as rampant crime bears down on their communities.
In March, one New Yorker told Fox 5 New York the crime was “getting worse.”
“It’s unbelievable. You can’t even go out to the street,” she added:
Another resident said, “Crime has increased a lot. Right now, it’s like we’re scared to get on the trains if something might happen because somebody has a gun, somebody has a knife, you sit by the door somebody could get you, slice you in your face.”
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