Jessica Tisch, whose public service spans three mayoral administrations, took the oath of office on Monday, becoming the fourth NYPD commissioner to serve under Mayor Eric Adams.
Adams called Tisch a “battle-tested leader.” Until last week, she served as head of the city sanitation department, leading Adams’ “war on rats” and his “trash revolution” and using the agency to implement curbside composting and clean up city streets.
In a speech after being sworn in, Tisch praised Adams, saying she couldn’t “ask for a finer boss.”
“You’ve trusted my judgement, given me incredible latitude and, yes, independence,” she told Adams.
She takes the helm of the country’s largest police force at a difficult moment. She will succeed interim Police Commissioner Thomas Donlon, a former FBI agent whose home was raided by the FBI soon after his appointment in September. Donlon’s predecessor, Edward Caban, left amidst an FBI investigation. Adams’s first commissioner, Keechant Sewell, left after speaking out about sexism within the department.
Tisch is a Harvard graduate and lifelong New Yorker who served in various city roles under Mayors Michael Bloomberg and Bill de Blasio. She was sworn in standing beside her two children and her nephew.
The sanitation department’s current first deputy commissioner, Javier Lojan, will take the helm of that agency, department spokesperson Josh Goodman said.