NYPD Commissioner Edward Caban gives first remarks as new department head
NYPD Commissioner Edward Caban delivers speech after Mayor Eric Adams formally names him as city's first Latino police department head.
New York City Mayor Eric Adams formally named a new NYPD commissioner Monday nearly a month after Keechant Sewell's departure as department head.
At a press conference at the NYPD's 40th precinct, Adams named First Deputy Commissioner Edward A. Caban as his new NYPD Commissioner.
Caban, now the city's first Latino commissioner, had been serving as interim commissioner since Sewell's resignation went into effect on June 30.
The 40th precinct is where Caban first began his career at the NYPD as a police officer more than three decades ago in 1991, patrolling the streets of the south Bronx.
"I want to begin by giving thanks to God for this incredible day, because with God, all things are possible," Caban said after being sworn in.
"My journey with the NYPD began over 32 years ago. A young Puerto Rican kid from Parkchester standing on a foot post in the South Bronx, just like thousands who came before me and thousands who have come after me in those days, the top bosses of the police department didn't really look like me. Police Officer Eddie Caban could not walk into the 4-0 Precinct, look up at the leadership photos hanging on the wall and envision his future."
First Deputy Commissioner Edward A. Caban waves as he arrives for a press conference at the NYPD 40th Precinct on July 17, 2023, in New York City.
Caban praised his predecessor during his first speech as commissioner Monday.
"The NYPD is the most consequential police department in all of law enforcement. Its storied history is a living legacy of valor, bravery and sacrifice. Of ordinary New Yorkers who did extraordinary things. Of course, my three decades of experience, I have seen those qualities close from simple acts of kindness to uncompromised examples of bravery," he said. "Commissioner Sewell smashed the glass ceiling that lingered on for far too long, and she did so with grace, confidence and honor. In her time as police commissioner, she brought down crime, and we are standing on that great foundation. Together, we will build upon our successes and continue to drive down crime and improve the quality of life in our communities."
"Now, it's not lost on me that today's announcement is also a first given how many great leaders of Hispanic descent have come before me in the NYPD to be the first Hispanic police commissioner is an honor of the highest measure," he said. "I spoke earlier of a young officer at the 40 precinct looking up at the wall and wondering whether he belonged. Today, I hope there is a young man, a college student or military veteran who hears about my new assignment today, and it sparks the question, ‘what if?’ To them I say, the NYPD wants you. The NYPD needs you, and your commissioner has plenty for you to do. So come join us and as the mayor likes to say, 'let's get stuff done'."
New York City Mayor Eric Adams and then-NYPD Commissioner Keechant Sewell attend a New York City Police Academy Graduation Ceremony at Madison Square Garden on April 24, 2023, in New York. (YUKI IWAMURA/AFP via Getty Images)
At the press conference, Adams also thanked Sewell for her 18 months of service as commissioner – while taking a dig at former New York City Mayor Rudy Giuliani’s legacy.
"This is an amazing moment for not only the Spanish-speaking community," Adams said of Caban’s appointment. "This is amazing moment for our entire city and country of what we are doing. And when we appointed Keechant Sewell to be the first woman to be the police commissioner in the city of New York, we started on a journey when the police department was moving in the wrong direction in the area of law enforcement. Morale was down."
"We were placing them on the front line. We started the year losing two young people Mora and Rivera," the mayor said, noting the line-of-duty deaths of two young officers. "No matter what our officers did, we treated them with a level of disrespect. We wanted them to be on the front line, but we were not there for them when they were on that front line."
Adams said when he took office he delivered the message to officers, "I’ve got your back."
"Everyone states that one of the most significant moments in our history around public safety was during the years of Giuliani in his last year how low crime was," Adams said Monday. "Well, let me tell you about what Keechant and this commissioner did with 20% lower in crime in this city than under his administration in his years we turned around this city. Shootings are down, homicides down. The seven major violent crimes are down. And we're doing it with the level of respect and dignity that people deserve without being abusive."
New York City Mayor Eric Adams speaks during a press conference on gun violence at the Office of Chief Medical Examiner on June 26, 2023, in New York City. Adams was joined by First Deputy Commissioner Edward A. Caban. (Michael M. Santiago/Getty Images)
In 2022, Caban became the NYPD’s First Deputy Commissioner, leading a broad range of agency functions according to the strategic vision of the Police Commissioner, including: policy development, personnel management, recruit and in-service training, and overall supervision of the department’s discipline system, according to his department bio.
He was designated the Acting Police Commissioner of the City of New York by Adams on July 1.
Caban's father, Juan, was a New York City Transit Police Detective, who also served as the President of the Transit Police Hispanic Society.
Sewell, the first female and third African American NYPD commissioner, penned a resignation letter to colleagues in mid-June.
"I have made the decision to step down from my position," she wrote, without offering an explanation. "While my time here will come to a close, I will never step away from my advocacy and support for the NYPD, and I will always be a champion for the people of New York City."
"I was acutely aware of the challenges you faced both before I arrived and what you experience daily," Sewell said. "That is why I made your wellness one of my priorities. We cannot be expected to deliver the type and quality of police services that New Yorkers deserve unless we care for and protect the guardians of this city."
Her departure came just 18 months after Adams first appointed Sewell to the position in December 2021. Most recently before then, Sewell was chief of detectives in Nassau County.
Adams on Monday also announced Tania Kinsella, the commander of the 120th Precinct, as the first woman of color to serve as NYPD First Deputy Commissioner.
