New York City’s top cop announced his retirement Monday after a turbulent three-year run in the high-profile and high-pressure job.
O’Neill plans to take a job in the private sector.
“I came into this job with one mission: to fight crime and keep everybody safe, and we did it and continue to do it,” O’Neill said during a press conference Monday.
The mayor said O’Neill was the “architect of neighborhood policing. He drove crime to record lows while working tirelessly to bring police and communities together. He leaves behind a city that’s safer than it’s been in decades,” de Blasio tweeted. “I’m lucky to have worked with as good a man as Jimmy O’Neill.”
O’Neill’s announced resignation came on the heels of the firing of former Officer Daniel Pantaleo due to his actions in the incident that led to Eric Garner’s death and amid mounting pressure, as local media reported.
Dermot Shea, the current chief of detectives, was named by Mayor Bill de Blasio to replace O’Neill.
Shea, who has served the force in varying roles for 28 years, is the son of Irish immigrants, growing up in Queens with four siblings in a one-bedroom apartment.
“Treat people with dignity, respect, treat people the same,” Shea said in speaking of values instilled in him by his mother.
