My call to protect and serve NYC

The law is in my blood. My brothers and I grew up with it, watching my father leave the house every day from our home in Cambria Heights, off to protect the people of the city. His name was Philip too. And I, like many other people, followed in my father’s footsteps.

Now, nearly 40 years after I left home, and after nearly 30 years as a member of the NYPD, I still want to serve. But as I take on a new role as deputy mayor for public safety, I owe it to New Yorkers, and to our new Mayor Eric Adams, to answer some questions that have been raised about me.

Based on the release of court records, there has been much speculation about my relationship with two men, Jona Rechnitz and Jeremy Reichberg, who were later convicted as part of a corruption investigation. I was never charged with any crime as part of that investigation, which is why I never felt it necessary to address the reports.

The central theme of the reports about my involvement in the corruption scheme was that I was party to it; that I traded favors as a senior NYPD official for some form of compensation. That is 100% false. In fact, neither defendant even claimed this. I never did anything in my official capacity for Rechnitz or Reichberg.

The other story is that I left the NYPD to avoid a departmental trial on the investigation. That is also completely false. I was asked by the police commissioner to take the position of first deputy commissioner in the NYPD. Some considered this to be a promotion, others did not. I expressed my concern about accepting the position. I did not feel I could be effective in the role.

The commissioner stated that he would like me to stay on and we discussed the restructuring of my role, but we could not agree. Ultimately it was the commissioner’s decision to define the role, and I respected that and his decades of success in law enforcement. But it was my decision whether to accept. And after three decades in the NYPD, I made the decision to retire.

There are also individual details of the speculation that I would like to address. It was reported that I had unexplained income in my bank accounts. This again proved to be false. There was a question about unreported income from my rental properties. The IRS investigated these questions and took no action. For instance, the rental income was payments from a tenant who is a long-time family friend. And those payments were offset by the cost of repairs and other expenses incurred by the properties, which I never deducted. In hindsight though, I absolutely should have declared the income and taken the legally allowed deductions associated with those properties.

And there was a question of why I invested my money with Rechnitz. The answer to that is simple: At the time, I believed he was a legitimate businessman.

Despite the fact that I never broke the law, nor did I ever betray the public trust by abusing my authority as an NYPD official, I do

My interaction with Rechnitz and Reichberg was a mistake. These two men were attempting to corrupt public officials — and I now regret the time I spent with them.

also want to offer an apology to the people of New York. My interaction with Rechnitz and Reichberg was a mistake. These two men were attempting to corrupt public officials — and I now regret the time I spent with them. I realize now that even the appearance of our friendship was damaging to my profession. I hope that from here on, I can serve the people of New York excellently to prove my commitment to them.

It is an odd thing to watch and listen to your name get dragged through the mud. And I would probably just stay out of public life if it was not just my name being dragged through the mud. But it is not just my name. It is my father’s name.

I love the law and I love this city. I want to serve. I know I can help keep this city safe. So I will serve. From here on, I promise all New Yorkers that I will let my hard work be the evidence of my commitment. But more importantly, it will be how I live up to my dad’s name and fulfill my promise to the people of New York City.