New York’s mayor-elect Bill de Blasio announced on Thursday that he will appoint William J. Bratton to serve as New York’s police commissioner beginning January 1, 2014.
Bratton was appointed to be the New York City police commissioner in 1994 by Rudy Giuliani and worked with Giuliani to implement stop-and-frisk and adopted the broken-window theory of policing — cracking down on minor crime to bring down crime in general.
Under Bratton’s leadership, crime fell by 39 percent in the 1990s in New York City. After working in New York, Bratton was hired to act as the police chief for the LAPD, where crime was reduced by 54 percent compared to what it was under his predecessor.
“Bill Bratton is a proven crime-fighter. He knows what it takes to keep a city safe, and make communities full partners in the mission,” mayor-elect Bill de Blasio said in a statement. “Together, we are going to preserve and deepen the historic gains we’ve made in public safety – gains Bill Bratton helped make possible. And we will do it by rejecting the false choice between keeping New Yorkers safe and protecting their civil rights. This is an Administration that will do both.”
Bratton helped create the policy of stop-and-frisk which de Blasio advocated against and vowed to reform during his campaign. “Bill Bratton knows that when it comes to stop-and-frisk it has to be used with respect and it has to be used properly,” de Blasio said.
With crime rates in New York low compared to their level in the early 1990s, Bratton has vowed to continue a strong policing policy with “innovative tactics” and the “best technology.” “This department will not rest on its laurels,” he said. “We are going to continue making history as the safest big city in America.”