The "Protecting the NYPD From Us" Edition
A policy from Mayor Adams that nearly broke me, the rats that literally live in the mayor's home, a $48 shirt from the Department of Sanitation, where to find good chicken noodle soup, and more
Every few months, writing an edition of The Briefly becomes difficult. My morning routine doesn’t change as the dogs cuddle up on either side of me on the couch, and I open my laptop. It’s not because of a computer issue or a website that’s down, but because the news itself is overwhelming. As New Yorkers, it’s pretty easy to deal with the bad local news with some humor or skepticism. It’s what we do collectively to keep going. The front page of the Daily News or New York Post regularly tries to rise to the level of our self-defense in an attempt to win over enough of our curiosity to buy a paper. The weight of the news is what drove me to write The “A Letter of Thanks” Edition instead of the usual edition of The Briefly last week. Between then and now, it happened again.
Mayor Adams directs NYPD, first responders to involuntarily take mentally ill to hospitals (Elizabeth Kim for Gothamist)
This made me want to quit. This is a heinous decision, framed callously, that makes me ashamed.
If this policy were about helping people, there would be an equally important focus on improving our healthcare system to assist people who need our help and to do so in a way that doesn’t destroy someone’s finances, but no. This policy is dribbling forth from our bumbling, cop-first mayor and not about helping or protecting the mentally ill. It is a policy that acts first, asks questions later, and protects the NYPD against us, the city's population. The ACLU is arguing that this policy, as written, could result in the deprivation of individual liberty and non-dangerous people being confined due to speculation over their future conduct.
This feels like a policy meant to make commuters and people who go to see Billy Joel at MSG more comfortable than helping the people who live here. Maybe that’s exactly what this is, since the mayor lived in New Jersey before he was forced to move for work.
• The Civilian Complaint Review Board recorded close to 2,700 allegations that police abused their power by sending someone to the hospital against their will since 2017, with an additional 400-plus allegations involving officers who made threats to do the same. (Jaclyn Jeffrey-Wilensky for Gothamist)
• The head of the New York City Police Department on Wednesday named Jeffrey Maddrey to the agency’s highest uniformed rank despite past disciplinary charges and drawn-out litigation dating back years. (Chelsia Rose Marcius for NY Times)
• There’s an unpaid ticket for a rat infestation in the mayor’s Lafayette Ave apartment, finally answering the question of who lives there. (Clio Chang for Curbed)
• Perhaps the city’s “rat czar” can start there. A listing popped up for Rat Czar and the mayor wants to pay someone $170,000 for the job. What’s the likelihood we see a future headline from The City showing a personal relationship between the mayor and whoever he hires for the job? (Elizabeth Kim for Gothamist)
• Speaking of giving his friends jobs, Mayor Adams Lisa White, who once rented a room from the mayor in his rat-infested building on Lafayette, a $241,000/year job as deputy commissioner of employee relations. White was also a campaign spokesperson for the mayor during his mayoral campaign. (Yoav Gonen for The City)
• Maybe the mayor hopes to sell enough $48 anti-rat t-shirts to pay for the rat czar position. (Serena Tara for Thrillist)
• A history of Dyker Heights’ Christmas lights. (StreetEasy)
• Photos: Scenes from the 2022 Dyker Heights Christmas Lights. (Scott Lynch for Brooklyn Magazine)
• Nine warming bowls of chicken noodle soup and where to find them. (Caroline Shin for Eater)
Please continue to send in your NYC and pet photos. The Briefly will return to its usual format on Friday!