See A Cop Dawdling On Their Phone? Send Eric Adams A Photo, He Says

NEW YORK, NY — Mayor Eric Adams is wary of New Yorkers filming misbehaving cops — unless, apparently, that cop is spending too long scrolling Instagram.

The mayor called on straphangers this week to send him photos of police officers in the city's transit system caught staring at their phones instead of patrolling.

The sight, the mayor said, has already become a common complaint to his office (and on Twitter) amid the city and state's deployment of thousands more officers to the subways aimed at addressing a spike in crime.

"All of you who take the train, you walk downstairs and you see five transit officers standing at the booth, looking at their phones. We just can't continue to do that," Adams said at press conference about his recent budget proposal. "New Yorkers, you see that? Send me a photo and I would be at that station."

(Have a photo of police on their phones? Send it to Patch too at patch_nyc@patch.com)

The call comes despite Adams' previous disdain for New Yorkers who take out their phones to film perceived misconduct by police officers, which he warned can make a situation more dangerous if bystanders get too close.

But photos of the slacking officers will help higher-ups make sure a million-dollar increase and money for Adams' Subway Safety Plan in his proposed budget is being put to good use, the mayor said.

Questions have mounted as to whether officers deployed in the safety plan have been effective at reducing the crime spike, including a mass shooting on a train at Sunset Park's 36th Street station earlier this month and a fatal shooting in Queens just this week.

"This is a conversation I'm having with the chief and the police commissioner," Adams said. "We are going to start taking very aggressive actions to make sure police are patrolling our subway system and not patrolling their iPhone."

And while Adams said many cops have told him they share the frustration with their fellow officers, at least some police higher-ups did not welcome the accusations.

Police union President Patrick J. Lynch claimed police are seen looking at their phones because they are required to fill out forms and check alerts through NYPD-issued smartphones to do their jobs.

“New York City police officers did not ask for NYPD-issued smartphones – we were ordered to carry and use them," he said. "If there’s a problem with cops using the phone on duty, NYPD management should change the policies and go back to pen and paper.”