Pioneer of NYPD retiring
NYPD barrier-breaking Chief of Department Rodney Harrison will retire at the end of the year from his post as the highest-ranking uniformed officer on the force, the department announced Thursday.
Harrison, who took the reins from Terence Monahan earlier this year after serving as the NYPD’s first black chief of detectives since late 2019, is due to retire Dec. 30, the NYPD said in a Thanksgiving Day press release.
The native of Jamaica joined the department in 1991 as a cadet, making him the first person to rise up the NYPD’s ranks from cadet to chief of department, the NYPD said.
“I’m extremely proud to have worked tirelessly over my entire career protecting people and giving back to the city’s communities,” Harrison said. “It’s been an honor to be a part of this great Police Department, to carry out our intelligence-driven policing strategies, to help develop several lasting reforms, and to build meaningful dialogue with our city’s young people. And I am privileged that two of my children will carry on this important work.”
Harrison started off in the 114th Precinct in Astoria, Queens before moving up the ranks, working as an executive officer in the 47th Precinct and commanding officer in the 28th and 32nd precincts.
In 2016, then-Police Commissioner James O’Neill appointed Harrison chief of patrol.
Harrison became the chief of detectives in December 2019, where he “directed the investigations of crimes during one of the most violent years New York City has experienced in decades,” the department said.
As chief of department, he oversaw the Compstat data system, managed recovery efforts after the George Floyd and Black Lives Matter riots last year, and worked to improve relations with community leaders amid the COVID-19 pandemic.
“Rodney has been not only a trusted adviser, and friend, but exactly the kind of innovative leader our city and our department has needed in these challenging times,” Police Commissioner Dermot Shea said.
“He has performed in every rank — from patrol officer to undercover officer, displaying tremendous valor, to chief of department — with knowledge, skill, integrity, and a great passion for our continuing mission to always protect life and property and to build lasting relationships with those we serve. We will miss him, but we wish him well.”
Harrison’s wife is a retired NYPD lieutenant, and two of their daughters, Amber and Tyra, were recently sworn in as police officers.