Complaints About NYPD Actions Rose Under Mayor Adams

A report by a watchdog agency showed that complaints against New York Police Department officers rose over the course of current New York City Mayor Eric Adams’ term. The Civilian Complaint Review Board (CCRB) received 5,570 reports of officer misconduct in the 2025 fiscal year, a 60% increase from 2022, according to the Mayor’s Management Report, which was released Sept. 19. The number actually reached matched a high not seen for a decade in 2024.

The number of substantiated complaints by the board rose from 1,064 in 2025 from about 729 in 2022, an increase noted by Brooklyn City Councilmember Lincoln Restler, who confronted police officials at a City Council meeting on Monday (Sept. 22) about the report. “The NYPD has shifted their approach to policing during this administration, and as a result, more people are complaining about misconduct,” he said, expressing that he was “very concerned” that the data showed the complaint increase in the categories of the use of force, use of offensive language and abuse of authority.

NYPD Deputy Commissioner Michael Gerber, who oversees legal matters, pointed to the City Council giving the CCRB more jurisdiction and the ability to initiate investigations. He also stated that under NYPD Commissioner Jessica Tisch, the department has imposed discipline on officers in 76% of the cases where the CCRB recommended it, representing a sharp increase from 30% prior to her appointment last November.

“It is not just that the department is agreeing with the C.C.R.B. much more often; it is also evaluating C.C.R.B. cases and imposing discipline at a much faster pace,” Gerber said, also noting Tisch’s reversal of policies making it easier for the NYPD to outright dismiss cases from the board. “The Adams administration remains committed to providing communities the police presence they want and deserve, which means New Yorkers are inevitably having more interactions with law enforcement,” said Adams’ spokeswoman Kayla Mamelak Altus.

The report comes as Mayor Adams is facing an uphill battle in his bid to be reelected in a few weeks, with the NYPD facing more examination of its role in keeping the city safe, which has become a key issue for voters. City Comptroller Brad Lander, who endorsed the Democratic candidate Zohran Mamdani, pointed out the use of excessive force and how it “harms New Yorkers” in his own report on Monday.