NYPD Cop Crisis: Lowest number of police on NYC streets since 1990 amid bail reforms, crime wave

The number of New York City police officers assigned to patrol its street has crashed to its lowest point in 34 years, according to a recent report.

Of the 33,695 sworn New York Police Department (NYPD) officers, there are fewer actually patrolling the city’s five boroughs since 1990, according to statistics obtained by the New York Post.

The Manhattan based newspaper says in 1990 the NYPD had 32,541 in its ranks.

But more than 800 men and women in blue have left the NYPD this year along, and 257 of them resigned from their posts before even reaching the 20-year point which allows them to collect their full pensions.

NYPD sources told the New York Post that most police men and women have left to pursue greener pastures in safer, suburban police departments north of the city in Westchester County or east of the city in on Long Island, where there is less violent crime and higher pay.

“New York City police officers’ workload has exploded over the past several months, and the staffing is still nowhere close to keeping up,” Police Benevolent Association President Patrick Hendry told the Post.

“From the daily protest details to additional patrols in the subway, our members are beyond exhausted already – and summertime crime spikes are just around the corner,” he explained. “Squeezing cops for even more overtime hours is not a solution. It will just send even more of them running for the exits.”

The New York Post also reported that retirements have skyrocketed to 11% this year alone.

One NYPD officer, who spoke to The Post only on the condition of anonymity said he retired in January after 20 years because he was frustrated with anti-police sentiment and bail reform laws that stopped him from protecting innocent people.

“When I first got on the job there was a certain level of respect for the police officer. In regards to no-bail, these guys know they can punch a cop and be let out the next day. There’s no consequences. So, a lot of cops are like, ‘What the hell are we doing?'” said the 42-year-old former officer who used to patrol the Bronx.

He said that entering retirement was “like somebody lifted an elephant and took it off [my shoulders].”

The officer, who is married with three children also said that having to deal with increased political protests and subway crimes shifted his time away from regular duties and his family.

“If you go to any of the outer counties, particularly in Westchester or Long Island, those guys are making a tremendous amount of money for maybe half the work that our guys do.”

Meanwhile, Mayor Eric Adams said that two of the NYPD academy classes that were initially canceled last month have been rescheduled, which will increase the diminishing ranks by 1,200.

The NYCPBA however says that even those 1,200 new hires will “barely keep the headcount flat.”