NYPD gets ready to roll out neighborhood safety teams

NEW YORK (PIX11) --- After a violent weekend, dozens of uniformed NYPD officers will hit New York City streets Monday as part fo a new initiative aimed at reducing gun violence and keeping neighborhoods around the five boroughs safer.

Mayor Eric Adams introduced his neighborhood safety team plan back in January, but it took some time for the program to launch. Compared to last year, violent crime in the city has jumped.

Beginning Monday, the highly anticipated neighborhood safety teams will deploy in the most dangerous precincts around the five boroughs. It’s a revamped version of the previous plainclothes anti-crime units, which created a lot of controversy because some said it was too aggressive.

The new plan will, at first, dispatch 25, five member teams. NYPD Commissioner Keechant Sewwell said the goal is getting guns off streets. She said the officers will be a visible presence on city streets.

"They are not in plain clothes; the uniform on the back plainly states NYPD Police," she said. "They are there for the safety of the community and to get the violent offenders off the streets."