Sanitation Commissioner Jessica Tisch appointed by Mayor Adams as new NYPD Commissioner

Sanitation Commissioner Jessica Tisch will take over the reins NYPD Monday as the city’s new top cop, Mayor Eric Adams announced Wednesday.

Tisch succeeds Interim Police Commissioner Tom Donlon, who took the post back in September following the resignation of Edward Caban, who resigned amid a federal corruption investigation into the department involving his brother. She will not only be the second female top cop in the city’s history, but also Mayor Adams’ incoming police commissioner in his first term.

“To ensure that New Yorkers have the ability to thrive in our city, we need a strong, battle-tested leader who will continue to fight crime and ensure that New Yorkers are safe and feel safe, and I can’t think on a leader more up to the task than Commissioner Jessica Tisch,” Adams said during a Nov. 20 news conference at City Hall. “As one of the most successful leaders in our administration, I am confident that Commissioner Tisch will effectively will lead the world’s best police department and continue to provide the safety and security New Yorkers deserve.”

However, Adams and Tisch did not take any questions about her new appointment, which was announced during a press conference on the mayor’s budget amendment in November. He said she will answer press questions after her swearing-in on Monday.

Tisch, who is part of a wealthy New York family that owns the Loews Corporation, previously held several civilian positions in the police department but was never a uniformed officer. Those positions included Deputy Commissioner for Information Technology under former Mayor Bill de Blasio.

Adams named her sanitation commissioner at the start of his 2022 term, and Tisch’s tenure at the agency made her one of the more stable leaders of the scandal-plagued administration.

Following Caban’s resignation, Tisch’s name had been included on a short list of potential long-term replacements.

“It is now my privilege to lead you and I look forward to coming home,” Tisch said at a Nov. 20 news conference at City Hall. “Mayor Adams has been very clear that the priorities are to support you as a fight against crime and disorder, to keep you safe and to bring the department into the next century.”

Tisch has become known as the public face of Adams’ efforts to remove piles of black trash bags from city streets and combat the scourge of rodents that have long plagued the five boroughs. She has implemented policies such as moving back the time when New Yorkers can put their trash out on the street for pickup, and requiring businesses and homes to place their trash in containers with lids.

Tisch also spoke directly to New Yorkers about how she plans to lead the department with a renewed focus on addressing widespread fears that the city is unsafe.

“To New Yorkers, I hear you loud and clear,” she said. “The mission is to keep you safe, to make you feel safe and to improve your quality of life, to restore dignity and work to every street, every neighborhood, every district of the city.”

Tisch’s appointment quickly got the thumbs up from Scott Munro, president of the Detectives Endowment Association.

“The NYC detectives are thrilled with this selection,” Munro said in a statement. “We know we will work well with her. She understands the NYPD. We can count on her.”

While Donlon was not ultimately chosen to take on the commissioner position permanently, Adams said he will continue to serve the administration under Deputy Mayor for Public Safety Chauncey Parker. Donlon had reportedly wanted to be the next permanent top cop, but appeared to have been talked out of it after federal agents raided his home in September.

Donlon was rumored to resign early last month, following the mayor’s own federal indictment, but that did not happen.

Tisch’s first day as NYPD Commissioner will be Monday, Nov. 25.