NYPD Commissioner Dermot Shea ‘1,000 percent’ supports police funding cut

NYPD Commissioner Dermot Shea said Monday he is “1,000 percent” behind a proposal to shift police department funds to city youth groups.

“To help the kids of our city, I’m 1,000% behind shifting some funding from the police to youth programs,” Shea said on Twitter. “It’s incumbent upon all of us to dig down and do what’s needed.”

The announcement comes one day after Mayor Bill de Blasio announced plans to redirect NYPD funds to youth groups and social services amid calls to “defund” the police in the wake of widespread demonstrations over the May 25 death of George Floyd after he was pinned down by Minneapolis police.

The mayor said the details would be hammered out during budget talks and said public safety would not be sacrificed in making the cuts.

Rumors surfaced in the wake of de Blasio’s announcement that Shea and Chief of Department Terrence Monahan were resigning as part of a massive shakeup of the department — rumors that Shea said Monday were “absolutely false.”