An overwhelming majority of police officers in the NYPD say that the city is "less safe" under Mayor Bill de Blasio and that their relationship with the public has "greatly worsened," according to a survey by the police union.
The Patrolmen's Benevolent Association found that 87 percent of officers think the city is "less safe" since de Blasio took over in 2014 and that 96 percent think that the department's relationship with the people of New York has worsened as well.
PBA president Pay Lynch said that "morale is extremely low," according to a New York Daily News report:
A stunning 96% of officers who responded said they feel the relationship between the NYPD and the public has worsened in recent years, with 70% saying it has "greatly worsened," according to the poll handled by McLaughlin & Associates.
"The results of this survey prove what we've been hearing time and time again from members over the past two years - the job is more difficult than ever, the dangers are greater, and morale is extremely low," PBA President Pat Lynch said in a statement. [...]
"The understaffing, inadequate training, low pay and lack of support has had a chilling effect on police officers across the city," Lynch said.
"Police officers are risking and sometimes sacrificing their lives to protect their communities from real crime and mayhem, and now they live in constant fear of lawsuits, public complaints and are not supported by either the elected officials or the public," he added.
A former NYPD officer told the Daily News that he wouldn't let his kid join the NYPD because "you don't get the backing that you need."
"The general tone of the police department and the membership is that things are not good," said Joseph Pollini, a NYPD veteran who now teaches at the John Jay College of Criminal Justice. "If I had a kid eligible to go into the PD I wouldn't recommend it. You don't get the backing that you need."
Last year, dozens of NYPD officers literally turned their back on de Blasio during the funeral of a murdered officer because they blamed the mayor for creating an "anti-Police" environment in the city.