New NYC Mayor Appoints Brother To NYPD Deputy Commissioner Gig

New York, NY – Newly-Inaugurated New York City Mayor Eric Adams announced Friday that he had appointed his younger brother as the New York Police Department’s (NYPD) deputy commissioner for government affairs.

Retired NYPD Sergeant Bernard Adams, 56, has a degree in criminal justice from John Jay College but his LinkedIn profile indicated he has been employed in parking and transportation operations for Virginia Commonwealth University for more than 13 years, the New York Post reported.

Sgt. Adams was assigned to the 88th Precinct in Brooklyn when he responded to the terrorist attacks on the Twin Towers on 9/11.

The mayor was a captain in NYPD’s transit division.

Deputy police commissioner is a civilian post with a typical salary of just under $250,000, the New York Post reported.

The new mayor did not specific what his younger brother’s responsibilities would be, nor did he reveal his salary.

Deputy Commissioner Adams’ appointment was announced just hours after his older brother appointed one of his oldest friends to be the city’s deputy mayor of public safety, the New York Post reported.

The appointment of Philip Banks to the public safety leadership role came shortly after Eric Adams appointed his brother, David Banks, as New York City schools chancellor.

On Thursday, the new mayor dispensed with NYPD Deputy Commissioner of Internal Affairs Joseph Reznick and NYPD Deputy Commissioner for Employee Relations Robert Ganley, the New York Post reported.

Both Deputy Commissioners Reznick and Ganley had been collecting their NYPD pensions in addition to their hefty deputy commissioner salaries.

It’s not uncommon for New York City mayors to hire family members.

Former Mayor Michael Bloomberg hired his daughter and his sister to work in his administration, but neither of the women carried a prestigious title and both worked for free, according to the New York Post.

Most recent-former Mayor Bill de Blasio notoriously appointed his wife, Chirlane McCray, to head up the city’s $1.3 billion mental health initiative that ultimately bombed.

However, McCray was barred from collecting a paycheck by city’s nepotism rules, the New York Post reported.

It was unclear whether Deputy Commissioner Adams would be barred from collecting a salary while working under the administration of his older brother.

Erick Adams campaigned on a promise to make New York City safe again and to bring back NYPD’s anti-crime units to help accomplish that goal.

On Dec. 15, he fulfilled his campaign promise to hire a black woman to run the nation’s largest police department when he appointed Nassau County Police Department Chief of Detectives Keechant Sewell to take the helm of NYPD as the first female police commissioner.

“Keechant Sewell is a proven crime fighter with the experience and emotional intelligence to deliver both the safety New Yorkers need and the justice they deserve,” Adams told CNN in a statement. “Chief Sewell will wake up every day laser-focused on keeping New Yorkers safe and improving our city, and I am thrilled to have her at the helm of the NYPD.”

Chief Sewell, 49, became NYPD’s 45th top cop when she replaced NYPD Commissioner Dermot Shea on Jan. 1.