HOME

TheInfoList



OR:

Raymond Walter Kelly (born September 4, 1941) is an American police officer who was the longest-serving
Commissioner A commissioner (commonly abbreviated as Comm'r) is, in principle, a member of a commission or an individual who has been given a commission (official charge or authority to do something). In practice, the title of commissioner has evolved to incl ...
in the history of the
New York City Police Department The City of New York Police Department, also referred to as New York City Police Department (NYPD), is the primary law enforcement agency within New York City. Established on May 23, 1845, the NYPD is the largest, and one of the oldest, munic ...
(NYPD) and the first person to hold the post for two non-consecutive tenures. According to its website, Kelly, a lifelong New Yorker, had spent 45 years in the NYPD, serving in 25 different commands and as
Police Commissioner A police commissioner is the head of a police department, responsible for overseeing its operations and ensuring the effective enforcement of laws and maintenance of public order. They develop and implement policies, manage budgets, and coordinate ...
from 1992 to 1994 and again from 2002 until 2013. Kelly was the first man to rise from Police Cadet to Police Commissioner, holding all of the department's
ranks A rank is a position in a hierarchy. It can be formally recognized—for example, cardinal, chief executive officer, general, professor—or unofficial. People Formal ranks * Academic rank * Corporate title * Diplomatic rank * Hierarchy ...
, except for Three-Star Bureau Chief, Chief of Department and Deputy Commissioner, having been promoted directly from Two-Star Chief to First Deputy Commissioner in 1990. After his handling of the
World Trade Center bombing The 1993 World Trade Center bombing was a terrorist attack carried out by Ramzi Yousef and associates against the United States on February 26, 1993, when a van bomb detonated below the 1 World Trade Center (1971–2001), North Tower of the Worl ...
in 1993, he was mentioned for the first time as a possible candidate for
FBI Director The director of the Federal Bureau of Investigation is the head of the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI), a United States federal law enforcement agency, and is responsible for its day-to-day operations. The FBI director is appointed for a ...
. ;
video of broadcast
After Kelly turned down the position,
Louis Freeh Louis Joseph Freeh (born January 6, 1950) is an American attorney and former judge who served as the fifth director of the Federal Bureau of Investigation from September 1993 to June 2001. Graduated from Rutgers University and New York Univers ...
was appointed. Kelly was a
Marine Corps Reserve The Marine Forces Reserve (MARFORRES or MFR), also known as the United States Marine Corps Reserve (USMCR) and the U.S. Marine Corps Forces Reserve, is the reserve force of the United States Marine Corps. The Marine Corps Reserve is an expedi ...
colonel Colonel ( ; abbreviated as Col., Col, or COL) is a senior military Officer (armed forces), officer rank used in many countries. It is also used in some police forces and paramilitary organizations. In the 17th, 18th, and 19th centuries, a colon ...
, director of police under the
United Nations Mission in Haiti The United Nations Mission in Haiti (UNMIH) was a peacekeeping operation carried out by the United Nations between September 1993 and June 1996. The Mission was reestablished (''MINUSTAH'') in April 2004, after a 2004 Haitian coup d'état, rebell ...
, and an
Interpol The International Criminal Police Organization – INTERPOL (abbreviated as ICPO–INTERPOL), commonly known as Interpol ( , ; stylized in allcaps), is an international organization that facilitates worldwide police cooperation and crime cont ...
vice president. During the
Clinton administration Bill Clinton's tenure as the 42nd president of the United States began with his first inauguration on January 20, 1993, and ended on January 20, 2001. Clinton, a Democrat from Arkansas, took office following his victory over Republican in ...
, Kelly served as Treasury Department Under Secretary for Enforcement, as Customs Service Commissioner and was in the running to become the first United States Ambassador to Vietnam, after President
Bill Clinton William Jefferson Clinton (né Blythe III; born August 19, 1946) is an American politician and lawyer who was the 42nd president of the United States from 1993 to 2001. A member of the Democratic Party (United States), Democratic Party, ...
extended full diplomatic relations to that country in 1995. In March 2011, New York Senator
Chuck Schumer Charles Ellis Schumer ( ; born November 23, 1950) is an American politician serving as the Seniority in the United States Senate, senior United States Senate, United States senator from New York (state), New York, a seat he has held since 1999. ...
endorsed Kelly to become the next director of the FBI, and in July 2013, he endorsed Kelly to become
Secretary of Homeland Security The United States secretary of homeland security is the head of the United States Department of Homeland Security, the federal department tasked with ensuring public safety in the United States. The secretary is a member of the Cabinet of the U ...
. In March 2014, he was appointed as President of Risk Management Services at
Cushman & Wakefield Cushman & Wakefield Inc. is an American global Commercial property, commercial real estate services firm. The company's corporate headquarters is located in Chicago, Illinois. Cushman & Wakefield is among the world's largest commercial real est ...
, a New York City-based commercial real estate services firm. In 2015, the
New York Post The ''New York Post'' (''NY Post'') is an American Conservatism in the United States, conservative daily Tabloid (newspaper format), tabloid newspaper published in New York City. The ''Post'' also operates three online sites: NYPost. ...
reported that Kelly was considering a run for
New York City Mayor The mayor of New York City, officially mayor of the City of New York, is head of the executive branch of the government of New York City and the chief executive of New York City. The mayor's office administers all city services, public property, ...
, citing his "Love for New York City".


Education

Kelly graduated from
Archbishop Molloy High School Archbishop Molloy High School (also called Molloy, Archbishop Molloy, or AMHS) is a four-year private, college preparatory, Catholic school for grades 9–12, located on on 83-53 Manton Street, Briarwood, Queens, New York. It is part of the D ...
in 1959. He graduated with a
Bachelor of Business Administration A Bachelor of Business Administration (BBA) is an undergraduate degree in business administration awarded by colleges and universities after completion of four years and typically 120 credits of undergraduate study in the fundamentals of busine ...
from
Manhattan University Manhattan University (previously Manhattan College) is a private university, private, Catholic university in New York City. Originally established in 1853 by the De La Salle Brothers, De La Salle Christian Brothers (Institute of the Brothers o ...
in 1963. He also holds a J.D. from the St. John's University School of Law, a
LL.M. A Master of Laws (M.L. or LL.M.; Latin: ' or ') is a postgraduate academic degree, pursued by those either holding an undergraduate academic law degree, a professional law degree, or an undergraduate degree in another subject. In many jurisdi ...
from the
New York University School of Law The New York University School of Law (NYU Law) is the law school of New York University, a private research university in New York City. Established in 1835, it was the first law school established in New York City and is the oldest survivin ...
, and an M.P.A. from
Harvard Kennedy School The John F. Kennedy School of Government, commonly referred to as Harvard Kennedy School (HKS), is the school of public policy of Harvard University, a private university in Cambridge, Massachusetts. Harvard Kennedy School offers master's de ...
. Kelly has also been the recipient of honorary degrees from
Marist College Marist University is a private university in Poughkeepsie (town), New York, Poughkeepsie, New York, United States. Marist was founded by the Marist Brothers, a Catholic Church, Catholic religious institute, in 1905 to prepare brothers for their ...
,
Manhattan University Manhattan University (previously Manhattan College) is a private university, private, Catholic university in New York City. Originally established in 1853 by the De La Salle Brothers, De La Salle Christian Brothers (Institute of the Brothers o ...
, the College of St. Rose, St. John's University, the
State University of New York The State University of New York (SUNY ) is a system of Public education, public colleges and universities in the New York (state), State of New York. It is one of the List of largest universities and university networks by enrollment, larges ...
,
New York University New York University (NYU) is a private university, private research university in New York City, New York, United States. Chartered in 1831 by the New York State Legislature, NYU was founded in 1832 by Albert Gallatin as a Nondenominational ...
, Iona College,
Pace University Pace University is a private university with campuses in New York City and Westchester County, New York, United States. It was established in 1906 as a business school by the brothers Homer St. Clair Pace and Charles A. Pace. Pace enrolls about ...
,
Quinnipiac University Quinnipiac University ( ) is a private university in Hamden, Connecticut, United States. The university grants undergraduate, graduate, and professional degrees. It also hosts the Quinnipiac University Polling Institute. History What became ...
,
St. Thomas Aquinas College St. Thomas Aquinas College (STAC) is a private college in Sparkill, New York. The college is named after the medieval philosopher and theologian Thomas Aquinas. It was founded by the Dominican Sisters of Sparkill, whose headquarters are in th ...
and the
Catholic University of America The Catholic University of America (CUA) is a private Catholic research university in Washington, D.C., United States. It is one of two pontifical universities of the Catholic Church in the United States – the only one that is not primarily a ...
.


Personal

Kelly was born in 1941 and raised on the
Upper West Side The Upper West Side (UWS) is a neighborhood in the borough of Manhattan in New York City. It is bounded by Central Park on the east, the Hudson River on the west, West 59th Street to the south, and West 110th Street to the north. The Upper We ...
of
Manhattan Manhattan ( ) is the most densely populated and geographically smallest of the Boroughs of New York City, five boroughs of New York City. Coextensive with New York County, Manhattan is the County statistics of the United States#Smallest, larg ...
, to James F. Kelly, a milkman, and Elizabeth Kelly, a dressing-room checker at Macy's. A fitness buff since his teens, Kelly still regularly lifts weights and does aerobic exercises. He is also a fashionable dresser, favoring custom-made shirts that he takes to Geneva, a shirtmaker, for laundering. He also favors silk ties by Charvet. "A tie is the only true way men can make some sort of statement", Kelly has stated, citing Barack Obama as another fan of the high-end French label. "I can tell when someone's wearing Charvet from a distance – even dark colors stand out." Claiming that good-quality clothing enhances his public image as an authority figure, he orders custom hand-tailored suits from master tailor Martin Greenfield, who numbers politicians and movie stars among his clientele and whose suits run in the four figures. Kelly met his future wife Veronica on the beach at
Island Park, New York Island Park is a Administrative divisions of New York#Village, village located in the Hempstead, New York, Town of Hempstead in Nassau County, New York, Nassau County, New York (state), New York, United States. It is a neighbor to Long Beach, New ...
, where his family had a summer residence. Kelly is the father of Greg Kelly, former co-host of the local
Fox Foxes are small-to-medium-sized omnivorous mammals belonging to several genera of the family Canidae. They have a flattened skull; upright, triangular ears; a pointed, slightly upturned snout; and a long, bushy tail ("brush"). Twelve species ...
morning television show ''
Good Day New York ''Good Day New York'' is a morning show airing on WNYW Fox 5 (channel 5), hosted by Rosanna Scotto and Curt Menefee. It is a Fox owned-and-operated television station in New York City, owned by the Fox Television Stations subsidiary of Fox C ...
''. Currently host on Newsmax TV and weekday program on New York's WABC radio


Military

Kelly is a combat veteran of the Vietnam War. He received his commission as a second lieutenant in the
United States Marine Corps The United States Marine Corps (USMC), also referred to as the United States Marines or simply the Marines, is the maritime land force service branch of the United States Department of Defense. It is responsible for conducting expeditionar ...
in 1963. In 1965, he went to the
Republic of Vietnam South Vietnam, officially the Republic of Vietnam (RVN; , VNCH), was a country in Southeast Asia that existed from 1955 to 1975. It first garnered international recognition in 1949 as the State of Vietnam within the French Union, with it ...
with the
2nd Battalion 1st Marines 2nd Battalion, 1st Marines (2/1) is an infantry battalion in the United States Marine Corps based in Camp HORNO on Marine Corps Base Camp Pendleton, California. Nicknamed "The Professionals," the battalion consists of approximately 1,200 Marine ...
. As a
first lieutenant First lieutenant is a commissioned officer military rank in many armed forces; in some forces, it is an appointment. The rank of lieutenant has different meanings in different military formations, but in most forces it is sub-divided into a se ...
in
Vietnam Vietnam, officially the Socialist Republic of Vietnam (SRV), is a country at the eastern edge of mainland Southeast Asia, with an area of about and a population of over 100 million, making it the world's List of countries and depende ...
, Kelly led Marines in battle for most of his 12 months in country, including participation in Operation Harvest Moon. Upon returning to the U.S., Raymond Kelly joined the Reserves and retired after 30 years of service with the rank of
colonel Colonel ( ; abbreviated as Col., Col, or COL) is a senior military Officer (armed forces), officer rank used in many countries. It is also used in some police forces and paramilitary organizations. In the 17th, 18th, and 19th centuries, a colon ...
from the
Marine Corps Reserves The Marine Forces Reserve (MARFORRES or MFR), also known as the United States Marine Corps Reserve (USMCR) and the U.S. Marine Corps Forces Reserve, is the Reserve components of the United States armed forces, reserve force of the United State ...
.


Police career

Kelly joined the
New York City Police Department The City of New York Police Department, also referred to as New York City Police Department (NYPD), is the primary law enforcement agency within New York City. Established on May 23, 1845, the NYPD is the largest, and one of the oldest, munic ...
as a police trainee in 1960. Six years later in 1966, Kelly was appointed to the entry level rank of Patrolman. He graduated first in his class from the New York City Police Academy and passed the sergeant's test upon returning from Vietnam. This meteoric ascent combined with relative inexperience as a beat cop has prompted some criticisms from colleagues. Geoffrey Gray wrote in ''
New York Magazine ''New York'' is an American biweekly magazine concerned with life, culture, politics, and style generally, with a particular emphasis on New York City. Founded by Clay Felker and Milton Glaser in 1968 as a competitor to ''The New Yorker'' a ...
'' that, "Some retired cops say Kelly's swift ascent makes him a boss who doesn't understand the street. 'He's not a cop,' says one retired chief, dismissively. 'He's on patrol for a blink of an eye and tells guys on patrol ten years how to do their jobs.' Says another, 'He gives you all the ingredients to make shrimp scampi and says he wants sirloin steak.'" However, his long service stands in stark contrast to that of his predecessor, Bernard Kerik. Kerik served as an NYPD officer for only 8 years before he was appointed commissioner by Mayor
Rudy Giuliani Rudolph William Louis Giuliani ( , ; born May 28, 1944) is an American politician and Disbarment, disbarred lawyer who served as the 107th mayor of New York City from 1994 to 2001. He previously served as the United States Associate Attorney ...
.


First Deputy Commissioner

On February 9, 1990 Kelly was appointed First Deputy Commissioner during the administration of Mayor
David Dinkins David Norman Dinkins (July 10, 1927 – November 23, 2020) was an American politician, lawyer, and author who served as the 106th mayor of New York City from 1990 to 1993. Dinkins was among the more than 20,000 Montford Point Marine Associa ...
. Kelly's boss was
New York City Police Commissioner The New York City police commissioner is the head of the New York City Police Department and presiding member of the Board of Commissioners. The commissioner is appointed by and serves at the pleasure of the mayor. The commissioner is responsibl ...
Lee Brown, who was a former Houston Police Chief and the future mayor of Houston. Kelly was promoted from a Two-Star Assistant Chief to the First Deputy position over several Three-Star Bureau Chiefs and the Four-Star Chief of Department, Robert J. Johnston Jr. At the time Johnston was so powerful, Brown altered the traditional hierarchy by announcing that Johnston would report directly to the Police Commissioner rather than the First Deputy as had been called for under the former departmental structure. This was done to prevent Johnston from having to report to his former subordinate, Kelly.


37th NYC Police Commissioner

On October 16, 1992 Mayor Dinkins appointed Kelly as the 37th Police Commissioner of the City of New York. Kelly took over a police department that was 11.5% black, in a city with an over 25% black population. At 9 am on his first full day as Police Commissioner, Kelly was on the "black-owned" radio station
WLIB WLIB (1190 kHz, "La Exitosa 98.7 y 1190 AM") is a commercial AM radio station in New York City. Owned by Emmis Corporation, it is an AM simulcast of sister FM station 98.7 WEPN-FM. By day, WLIB is powered at 10,000 watts, using a direction ...
for 40 minutes talking to host Art Whaley, as well as callers, to discuss minority recruitment. He showed himself a master of outreach and even attended black church services in an effort to recruit minority policemen. The national decline in both violent crime and property crime began in 1993, during the early months of Raymond Kelly's commissioner-ship under Dinkins. A firm believer in community policing, Kelly helped spur the decline in New York by instituting the Safe Streets, Safe City program, which put thousands more cops on the streets, where they would be visible to and able to get to know and interact with local communities. As the 37th Commissioner, he also pursued quality of life issues, such as the "squeegee men" that had become a sign of decay in the city. The murder rate in New York city had declined from its 1990 mid-Dinkins administration historic high of 2,254 to 1,927 when Kelly left in 1994, and continued to plummet even more steeply under Mayors Giuliani and Bloomberg. The decline continued when Kelly returned as commissioner under Mayor Bloomberg in 2002–2013.


1993 World Trade Center terrorist attack

The first World Trade Center terrorist attack occurred on February 26, 1993 while Kelly was police commissioner under Mayor Dinkins (1992 to 1994) and Kelly led his department through the investigation of the
bombing A bomb is an explosive weapon that uses the exothermic reaction of an explosive material to provide an extremely sudden and violent release of energy. Detonations inflict damage principally through ground- and atmosphere-transmitted mechan ...
.


1993 NYPD handgun transition

In August 1993, Kelly introduced the
9mm This is a list of firearm cartridges that have bullets in the to caliber In guns, particularly firearms, but not #As a measurement of length, artillery, where a different definition may apply, caliber (or calibre; sometimes abbreviate ...
semi-automatic pistol as an option for officers. The
Glock Glock (; stylized as GLOCK) is a brand of polymer- framed, short-recoil-operated, striker-fired, locked-breech semi-automatic pistols designed and produced by Austrian manufacturer Glock Ges.m.b.H. The firearm entered Austrian military an ...
19,
SIG Sauer P226 The SIG Sauer P226 is a full-sized service pistol made by SIG Sauer. This model is available in four chamberings: the 9×19mm Parabellum, .40 S&W, .357 SIG, or .22 Long Rifle. It has the same mechanism of operation as the SIG Sauer P220, but ...
, and Smith & Wesson 5946 pistols were approved for duty to replace the NYPD's
Smith & Wesson Model 10 The Smith & Wesson Model 10, previously known as the Smith & Wesson .38 Hand Ejector Model of 1899, the Smith & Wesson Military & Police or the Smith & Wesson Victory Model, is a K-frame revolver. In production since 1899, the Model 10 is a six-s ...
and Model 64 double-action only revolvers chambered in .38 Special. Himself a former street cop, Kelly was concerned about the semi-automatic pistols' propensity for sustaining
firearm malfunction A firearm malfunction is the failure of a firearm to operate as intended for causes other than user error. Malfunctions range from temporary and relatively safe situations, such as a casing (ammunition), casing that did not eject, to potentially d ...
s. Indeed, at a media event introducing the new semi-automatic pistols in January 1993, one of the firearms malfunctioned just moments after a deputy inspector explained that malfunctions and failures were the semi-automatic pistol's major design drawback.


Transition

In November 1993, Rudolph Giuliani defeated Mayor Dinkins in his run for a second term as Mayor of New York City. Giuliani then replaced Kelly with
Boston Boston is the capital and most populous city in the Commonwealth (U.S. state), Commonwealth of Massachusetts in the United States. The city serves as the cultural and Financial centre, financial center of New England, a region of the Northeas ...
police commissioner
William Bratton William Joseph Bratton CBE (born October 6, 1947) is an American businessman and former law enforcement officer who served two non-consecutive tenures as the New York City Police Commissioner (1994–1996 and 2014–2016) and currently one of ...
. Coincidentally, Giuliani and Kelly had known each other for a long time; they were two years apart at Manhattan University (Then Manhattan College) three decades previously.


41st NYC police commissioner

As
commissioner A commissioner (commonly abbreviated as Comm'r) is, in principle, a member of a commission or an individual who has been given a commission (official charge or authority to do something). In practice, the title of commissioner has evolved to incl ...
of the NYPD under Mayor Michael Bloomberg, Kelly had often appeared at outreach events such as the Brooklyn's annual West Indian Day Parade, where he was photographed playing the drums and speaking to community leaders. Bloomberg and Kelly, however, continued to place heavy reliance on the
CompStat CompStat (also written COMPSTAT) is a police management system created by the New York City Police Department in 1994 with assistance from the New York City Police Foundation. Today, variations of the system are used in police departments worldwid ...
system, initiated by Bill Bratton and since adopted by police departments in other cities worldwide. The system, while recognized as highly effective in reducing crime, also puts pressure on local precincts to reduce the number of reports for the seven major crimes while increasing the number of lesser arrests. The two men continued and indeed stepped up Mayor Giuliani's controversial stop-and-frisk policy, which was determined in Floyd v. City of New York to be an unconstitutional form of racial profiling. In the first half of 2011 the NYC police made 362,150 such stops, constituting a 13.5 percent increase from the same period in 2010, according to WNYC radio (which also reported that 84 percent of the people stopped were either black or Latino, and that "nine out 10 stops did not result in any arrest or ticket.") According to New York State Senator
Eric Adams Eric Leroy Adams (born September 1, 1960) is an American politician and former police officer who has served as the 110th mayor of New York City since 2022. Adams was an officer in the New York City Transit Police and then the New York City P ...
, "Kelly was one of the great humanitarians in policing under David Dinkins. I don't know what happened to him that all of a sudden his philosophical understanding of the importance of community and police liking each other has changed. Sometimes the expeditious need of bringing down crime numbers bring out the worst in us. So instead of saying let's just go seek out the bad guy, we get to the point of, 'Let's go get them all.' If Kelly can't philosophically change, then we need to have a leadership change at the top." Under Bloomberg, Commissioner Kelly also revamped New York City's Police Department into a world-class
counter-terrorism Counterterrorism (alternatively spelled: counter-terrorism), also known as anti-terrorism, relates to the practices, military tactics, techniques, and strategies that governments, law enforcement, businesses, and intelligence agencies use to co ...
operation, operating in conjunction with CIA. Prior to the
September 11, 2001 attacks The September 11 attacks, also known as 9/11, were four coordinated Islamist terrorist suicide attacks by al-Qaeda against the United States in 2001. Nineteen terrorists hijacked four commercial airliners, crashing the first two into ...
there were fewer than two dozen officers working on terrorism full-time; ten years later there were over 1,000. One of Kelly's innovations was his unprecedented stationing of New York City police detectives in other cities throughout the world following terrorist attacks in those cities, with a view to determining if they are in any way connected to the security of New York. In the cases of both the March 11, 2004 Madrid bombing and the July 7, 2005 London bombings and July 21, 2005 London bombings, NYPD detectives were on the scene within a day to relay pertinent information back to New York. An August 2011 article by the Associated Press reported the NYCPD's extensive use of undercover agents (colloquially referred to as "rakers" and "mosque crawlers") to keep tabs, even build databases, on stores, restaurants, mosques. and clubs. NYPD spokesman Paul Browne denied that police trawled ethnic neighborhoods, telling the AP that officers only follow leads. He also dismissed the idea of "mosque crawlers," saying, "Someone has a great imagination."Colvin (August 24, 2011). Valerie Caproni, the FBI's general counsel, told the AP that the FBI is barred from sending agents into mosques looking for leads outside of a specific investigation and said the practice would raise alarms. "If you're sending an informant into a mosque when there is no evidence of wrongdoing, that's a very high-risk thing to do," she said. "You're running right up against core constitutional rights. You're talking about freedom of religion." However, as the ACLU acknowledged at the time, the FBI operates under limits such as the Federal Privacy Act that do not apply to state-authorized agencies such as the NYPD. Under Mayor Bloomberg, Kelly's NYPD also incurred criticism for its handling of the protests surrounding the
2004 Republican National Convention The 2004 Republican National Convention took place from August 30 to September 2, 2004, at Madison Square Garden in New York City, New York. The convention is one of a series of Republican National Convention, historic quadrennial meetings at w ...
, which resulted in the City of New York having to pay out millions in settlement of lawsuits for false arrest and civil rights violations, as well as for its rough treatment of credentialed reporters covering the 2011
Occupy Wall Street Occupy Wall Street (OWS) was a left-wing populist movement against economic inequality, capitalism, corporate greed, big finance, and the influence of money in politics that began in Zuccotti Park, located in New York City's Financial ...
demonstrations. On March 5, 2007 it was announced that a
Rikers Island Rikers Island is a prison island in the East River in the Bronx, New York (state), New York, United States, that contains New York City's largest jail. Named after Abraham Rycken, who took possession of the island in 1664, the island was orig ...
inmate offered to pay an undercover police officer posing as a hit person to behead Kelly as well as bomb police headquarters in retaliation for the controversial police shooting of Sean Bell. In 2012, Kelly oversaw the rollout of the Domain Awareness System, a computer system used for
Police surveillance in New York City The New York City Police Department (NYPD) actively monitors public activity in New York City, New York (state), New York, United States. Historically, surveillance has been used by the NYPD for a range of purposes, including against crime, cou ...
. In 2013 his visit to
Brown University Brown University is a Private university, private Ivy League research university in Providence, Rhode Island, United States. It is the List of colonial colleges, seventh-oldest institution of higher education in the US, founded in 1764 as the ' ...
was met with a demonstration against what protestors saw as increased racial profiling and violations of civil rights under Kelly's leadership as NYPD commissioner. In November 2014 it was reported that Kelly would no longer require a $1.5 million security team after completing his transition into the private sector. Prior to relieving his security detail and since leaving office, Kelly had 24-hour-a-day protection consisting of an
NYPD The City of New York Police Department, also referred to as New York City Police Department (NYPD), is the primary law enforcement agency within New York City. Established on May 23, 1845, the NYPD is the largest, and one of the oldest, munic ...
lieutenant, three sergeants and six detectives. With their $140,000 salaries (plus overtime), the ten-man team cost New York City taxpayers $1.5 million. The NYPD had argued this was a necessary expense due to the threats Kelly and his family received as a result of his work. Kelly determined he was no longer the target he once was.


New York City Police Pension Fund

In April 2009, Kelly abstained in a vote to remove
Quadrangle Group Quadrangle Group LLC is a private investment firm focused on private equity. The firm invests in middle-market companies within the media, communications and information-based sectors. The firm, which is based in New York City, was founded in ...
from doing business with the NYC police pension fund.


Other positions held


Director International Police Monitors

Kelly served as director of the
International Police The International Criminal Police Organization – INTERPOL (abbreviated as ICPO–INTERPOL), commonly known as Interpol ( , ; stylized in allcaps), is an international organization that facilitates worldwide police cooperation and crime cont ...
Monitors of the Multinational Force in
Haiti Haiti, officially the Republic of Haiti, is a country on the island of Hispaniola in the Caribbean Sea, east of Cuba and Jamaica, and south of the Bahamas. It occupies the western three-eighths of the island, which it shares with the Dominican ...
from October 1994 through March 1995. This U.S.-led force was responsible for ending human rights abuses and establishing an interim police force there. For his service in
Haiti Haiti, officially the Republic of Haiti, is a country on the island of Hispaniola in the Caribbean Sea, east of Cuba and Jamaica, and south of the Bahamas. It occupies the western three-eighths of the island, which it shares with the Dominican ...
, President
Bill Clinton William Jefferson Clinton (né Blythe III; born August 19, 1946) is an American politician and lawyer who was the 42nd president of the United States from 1993 to 2001. A member of the Democratic Party (United States), Democratic Party, ...
awarded Kelly a commendation for "exceptionally meritorious service". Kelly was also awarded the Commander's Award for Public Service by then
Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff The chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff (CJCS) is the presiding officer of the Joint Chiefs of Staff (JCS). The chairman is the highest-ranking and most senior military officer in the United States Armed Forces Chairman: appointment; gra ...
Gen. Shalikashvili.


Under Secretary for Enforcement

From 1996 to 1998, Kelly was Under Secretary for Enforcement at the
United States Department of the Treasury The Department of the Treasury (USDT) is the Treasury, national treasury and finance department of the federal government of the United States. It is one of 15 current United States federal executive departments, U.S. government departments. ...
. At that post he supervised the department's enforcement bureaus, including the
Customs Service Customs is an authority or agency in a country responsible for collecting tariffs and for controlling the flow of goods, including animals, transports, personal effects, and hazardous items, into and out of a country. Traditionally, customs ...
, the
Secret Service A secret service is a government agency, intelligence agency, or the activities of a government agency, concerned with the gathering of intelligence data. The tasks and powers of a secret service can vary greatly from one country to another. For i ...
and the
Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco and Firearms The Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (BATFE), commonly referred to as ATF, is a domestic law enforcement agency within the United States Department of Justice. Its responsibilities include the investigation and prevention ...
, the
Federal Law Enforcement Training Center The Federal Law Enforcement Training Centers (FLETC; pronounced ) is a law enforcement training school under the United States Department of Homeland Security, serving 105 federal law enforcement agencies within the United States federal governm ...
, the
Financial Crimes Enforcement Network The Financial Crimes Enforcement Network (FinCEN) is a bureau within the United States Department of the Treasury that collects and analyzes information about financial transactions to combat domestic and international money laundering, terrori ...
and the
Office of Foreign Assets Control The Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) is a financial intelligence and enforcement agency of the United States Department of the Treasury, United States Treasury Department. It administers and enforces economic and trade economic sanctions, ...
.


Interpol, Executive Committee

Kelly served on the executive committee and was elected vice president for the Americas of
Interpol The International Criminal Police Organization – INTERPOL (abbreviated as ICPO–INTERPOL), commonly known as Interpol ( , ; stylized in allcaps), is an international organization that facilitates worldwide police cooperation and crime cont ...
from 1996 to 2000.


Commissioner, U.S. Customs Service

From 1998 to 2001, Kelly served as the commissioner of the
U.S. Customs Service The United States Customs Service was a federal law enforcement agency of the U.S. federal government. Established on July 31, 1789, it collected import tariffs, performed other selected border security duties, as well as conducted criminal i ...
, where he managed the agency's 20,000 employees and $20 billion annual budget.


Chairman, New York State Athletic Commission

In 2001, Governor
George Pataki George Elmer Pataki (; born June 24, 1945) is an American politician who served as the 53rd governor of New York from 1995 to 2006. He previously served in the State Legislature from 1985 to 1994, and as the mayor of Peekskill from 1981 to 1984 ...
appointed Kelly to serve as chairman of the troubled
New York State Athletic Commission The New York State Athletic Commission or NYSAC, also known as the New York Athletic Commission, is a division of the New York State Department of State which regulates all contests and exhibitions of unarmed combat within the state of New York ...
. He resigned in 2002 to focus on his duties as police commissioner.


Private sector

Kelly was Senior Managing Director for Corporate Security at
Bear Stearns The Bear Stearns Companies, Inc. was an American investment bank, securities trading, and brokerage firm that failed in 2008 during the 2008 financial crisis and the Great Recession. After its closure it was subsequently sold to JPMorgan Chas ...
from 2000 to 2001. Kelly also worked as the head of the New York office of Investigative Group International, a private investigations firm. After leaving his post as
New York City Police Commissioner The New York City police commissioner is the head of the New York City Police Department and presiding member of the Board of Commissioners. The commissioner is appointed by and serves at the pleasure of the mayor. The commissioner is responsibl ...
, Kelly signed a deal with Greater Talent Network speakers bureau which was effective from January 1, 2014. He also works for K2 Intelligence, an investigative consultancy. Kelly, a retired Marine Colonel, was appointed as the Grand Marshal of the 95th annual
Veterans Day Veterans Day (originally known as Armistice Day) is a federal holiday in the United States observed annually on November 11, for honoring military veterans of the United States Armed Forces. It coincides with holidays in several countries, i ...
parade in New York City in 2014. He marched with his wife who was a member of the Coast Guard reserve. In August 2021, Kelly was named as a member of American
facial recognition Facial recognition or face recognition may refer to: *Face detection, often a step done before facial recognition *Face perception, the process by which the human brain understands and interprets the face *Pareidolia, which involves, in part, seein ...
company
Clearview AI Clearview AI, Inc. is an American facial recognition company, providing software primarily to law enforcement and other government agencies. The company's algorithm matches faces to a database of more than 20 billion images collected from the In ...
's
advisory board An advisory board is a body that provides non-binding strategic advice to the management of a corporation, organization, or foundation. The informal nature of an advisory board gives greater flexibility in structure and management compared to the ...
.


Department of Homeland Security speculation

In July 2013,
Secretary of Homeland Security The United States secretary of homeland security is the head of the United States Department of Homeland Security, the federal department tasked with ensuring public safety in the United States. The secretary is a member of the Cabinet of the U ...
Janet Napolitano Janet Ann Napolitano (; born November 29, 1957) is an American politician, lawyer, and academic administrator. She served as president of the University of California from 2013 to 2020, on the faculty at the Goldman School of Public Policy at t ...
announced that she was resigning and Kelly was immediately cited as an obvious potential successor by New York Senator
Charles Schumer Charles Ellis Schumer ( ; born November 23, 1950) is an American politician serving as the senior United States senator from New York, a seat he has held since 1999. A member of the Democratic Party, he has led the Senate Democratic Caucus si ...
and others. During a July 16, 2013 interview, President Obama referred generally to the "bunch of strong candidates" for nomination to head the
Department of Homeland Security The United States Department of Homeland Security (DHS) is the U.S. federal executive department responsible for public security, roughly comparable to the interior, home, or public security ministries in other countries. Its missions invol ...
(DHS), but singled out Kelly as "one of the best there is" or "very well qualified for the job". The next day, Kelly said he was "flattered" by Obama's praise but otherwise refused to confirm or deny whether he was interested in the secretary position. Describing "a growing campaign to quash the potential nomination of New York City Police Commissioner Raymond Kelly as the next secretary of the Department of Homeland Security", the ''Huffington Post'' cited a July 18 letter to Obama from a coalition of Muslim groups; the letter stated in part, "Commissioner Kelly's legacy in New York is synonymous with divisive, harmful and ineffective policing that promotes stereotypes and profiling". On July 22, Kelly penned a ''
Wall Street Journal ''The Wall Street Journal'' (''WSJ''), also referred to simply as the ''Journal,'' is an American newspaper based in New York City. The newspaper provides extensive coverage of news, especially business and finance. It operates on a subscriptio ...
'' opinion article defending the NYPD's programs, stating "the average number of stops we conduct is less than one per officer per week" and that this and other practices have led to "7,383 lives saved... they are largely the lives of young men of color." On October 17, 2013 President Obama moved to nominate
Jeh Johnson Jeh Charles Johnson ( "Jay"; born September 11, 1957) is an American lawyer and former government official. He was United States Secretary of Homeland Security from 2013 to 2017. From 2009 to 2012, Johnson was the general counsel of the Departm ...
to be
United States Secretary of Homeland Security The United States secretary of homeland security is the head of the United States Department of Homeland Security, the federal department tasked with ensuring public safety in the United States. The secretary is a member of the Cabinet of the ...
. ''
The Washington Post ''The Washington Post'', locally known as ''The'' ''Post'' and, informally, ''WaPo'' or ''WP'', is an American daily newspaper published in Washington, D.C., the national capital. It is the most widely circulated newspaper in the Washington m ...
'' reported "Johnson, an
African-American African Americans, also known as Black Americans and formerly also called Afro-Americans, are an American racial and ethnic group that consists of Americans who have total or partial ancestry from any of the Black racial groups of Africa. ...
, would bring further
racial diversity Race is a categorization of humans based on shared physical or social qualities into groups generally viewed as distinct within a given society. The term came into common usage during the 16th century, when it was used to refer to groups of va ...
to Obama's Cabinet. The first black U.S. president has been criticized for having a high number of white men in top Cabinet roles." In November 2013, a rule change in the United States Senate prevented the minority party from seriously contesting any executive nominee; Johnson was confirmed as DHS Secretary in December 2013.


Affiliations

Since becoming Police Commissioner, Kelly has served as the honorary president of the
Police Athletic League of New York City The Police Athletic League (PAL) is an independent, nonprofit organization, nonprofit youth development agency in New York City. PAL is funded by a combination of private donations and public funding sources and is a designated Charitable organ ...
(PAL) a non-profit youth development agency that helps inner-city children and teens. Also during his service as commissioner under Mayor Bloomberg, Kelly has been a member of the
Harvard Club of New York City The Harvard Club of New York City, commonly called The Harvard Club, is a private social club located in Midtown Manhattan, New York City. Its membership is limited to alumni, faculty and board members of Harvard University. Incorporated in 18 ...
, with membership and expenses charged covered by the privately funded New York City Police Foundation. The gift was not reported in Kelly's financial disclosures, but indications upon public revelation in 2010 were that the disclosures would be amended. A 2010 report on gifts "reported six shared plane flights to Florida in 2008 and five more in 2009, provided by Mayor ... Bloomberg at an undetermined cost".Rivera, Ray and William K. Rashbaum
"Police Leader Had Help With Harvard Club Dues"
October 25, 2010 (October 26, 2010 p. A20 NY ed.). The ''Times'' credited ''nypdconfidential.com'' with first report of the Club affiliation arrangement. Retrieved 2010-10-26.


Clashes with civil liberties group over transparency

On October 16, 2011 the
New York Civil Liberties Union The New York Civil Liberties Union (NYCLU) is a civil rights organization in the United States. Founded in November 1951 as the New York affiliate of the American Civil Liberties Union, it is a not-for-profit, nonpartisan organization with nearly ...
filed a lawsuit in
New York State Supreme Court The Supreme Court of the State of New York is the superior court in the Judiciary of New York. It is vested with unlimited civil and criminal jurisdiction, although in many counties outside New York City it acts primarily as a court of civil ju ...
in Manhattan seeking to force the New York Police Department to release the daily schedules of Commissioner Kelly, whom it characterized as "the most important appointed official" in city government. According to the suit the details of whom Kelly meets with remain largely shrouded in secrecy, in marked contrast to those of other high-placed officials, including the
president of the United States The president of the United States (POTUS) is the head of state and head of government of the United States. The president directs the Federal government of the United States#Executive branch, executive branch of the Federal government of t ...
, who are required to publicly disclose portions of their schedules.
New York Governor The governor of New York is the head of government of the U.S. state of New York. The governor is the head of the executive branch of New York's state government and the commander-in-chief of the state's military forces. The governor ha ...
Andrew M. Cuomo had begun posting a detailed version of his daily schedules online a month earlier. "There is no good reason for Commissioner Kelly to withhold this information from the public," Donna Lieberman, the executive director of the civil liberties group, said in a statement. "If it's safe for the leader of the country to disclose his schedule, then it's safe for the N.Y.P.D. commissioner to do the same." In Kelly's defense, Mitchell L. Moss, a professor of urban policy and planning at
New York University New York University (NYU) is a private university, private research university in New York City, New York, United States. Chartered in 1831 by the New York State Legislature, NYU was founded in 1832 by Albert Gallatin as a Nondenominational ...
, argued that a police commissioner should get "broad latitude" in a post-terrorist era. According to Professor Moss, "The police commissioner of New York City occupies a special, appointed position. He's our secretary of defense, head of C.I.A. or, I would say, chief architect rolled into one. He may be the one person who we should treat with some respect on his privacy." In an editorial entitled "They Like Transparency Until They Don't", the ''
New York Times ''The New York Times'' (''NYT'') is an American daily newspaper based in New York City. ''The New York Times'' covers domestic, national, and international news, and publishes opinion pieces, investigative reports, and reviews. As one of ...
'' admonished: Similarly, the ''Times'' was forced to go to court to get fuller access to police data. A judge had ruled in September 2011 that the New York Police Department had improperly withheld information about pistol owners and the locations of hate crimes.


Interview with ''60 Minutes'' about anti-terrorism measures now in place in New York City

On September 25, 2011 Kelly was interviewed on the television program ''60 Minutes'' by Scott Pelley about anti-terrorism measures taken in New York City's financial district in the 10 years following the 9/11 attacks. One of these was the development of a $3-billion NYPD Joint Operations Center that includes representatives from the military, FBI, FEMA and state and local first responders. During the interview, Kelly asserted that the New York City police department possesses missiles that could take down a plane: :Pelley: Are you satisfied that you've dealt with threats from aircraft, even light planes, model planes, that kind of thing? :Kelly: It's something that's on our radar screen. In an extreme situation, we have some means to take down a plane ... :Pelley: Do you mean to say the NYPD has the means to take down an aircraft? :Kelly: Yes. I'd prefer not to get into the details, but obviously this would be in a very extreme situation ... :Pelley: You have the means and the training? :Kelly: Yes. From the segment:
It is nearly impossible now to walk a block in lower Manhattan without being on television. There are 2,000 cameras and soon there will be 3,000 -- all of which feed into this control center housed in a secret location.
Technology built specifically for the NYPD includes radiological and nuclear detectors on boats, radiation detectors on helicopters and trucks and detectors on officers' gun belts so sensitive that people who have had medical procedures may trigger them. Lower Manhattan includes thousands of surveillance cameras that can identify shapes and sizes of unidentified "suspicious" packages and can track people descriptions, like, "someone wearing a red shirt," within seconds.


Potential involvement in Schoolcraft case

Kelly may have been aware of the alleged NYPD conspiracy against whistleblower
Adrian Schoolcraft Adrian Schoolcraft (born 1976) is a former New York City Police Department, New York City Police Department (NYPD) officer who secretly recorded police conversations from 2008 to 2009. He brought these tapes to NYPD investigators in October 2009 a ...
. According to the ''Village Voice'': "If proven true, YPD spokesperson PaulBrowne's presence at Schoolcraft's home on Oct. 31, 2009 suggests that Commissioner Kelly was aware of the decision by Deputy Chief Michael Marino to order Schoolcraft handcuffed and dragged from his own apartment just three weeks after he reported police misconduct to the unit which audits NYPD crime statistics."


Awards and honors

* Upon graduation from the New York City Police Academy, Kelly won the "Bloomingdale Trophy" for the highest general average in shooting and in academic and physical prowess. * He has received 15 citations for meritorious service in the
New York City Police Department The City of New York Police Department, also referred to as New York City Police Department (NYPD), is the primary law enforcement agency within New York City. Established on May 23, 1845, the NYPD is the largest, and one of the oldest, munic ...
. * In 2003, the National Father's Day Committee named Kelly, Father of the Year. * On March 16, 2006 Kelly was named Irish American of the Year by ''
Irish America ''Irish America'' is a bi-monthly periodical that aims to cover topics relevant to the Irish in North America including a range of political, economic, social, and cultural themes. The magazine’s inaugural issue was published in October 1985. ...
''. * On June 19, 2006 Kelly received
The Hundred Year Association of New York The Hundred Year Association of New York, founded in 1927, is a non-profit organization in New York City that recognizes and rewards dedication and service to the City of New York by businesses and organizations that have been in operation in the ...
's Gold Medal "in recognition of outstanding contributions to the City of New York. * On September 9, 2006 Kelly was awarded the
Légion d'honneur The National Order of the Legion of Honour ( ), formerly the Imperial Order of the Legion of Honour (), is the highest and most prestigious French national order of merit, both military and Civil society, civil. Currently consisting of five cl ...
during a ceremony at the French consulate in
Manhattan Manhattan ( ) is the most densely populated and geographically smallest of the Boroughs of New York City, five boroughs of New York City. Coextensive with New York County, Manhattan is the County statistics of the United States#Smallest, larg ...
, which was presided over by
Nicolas Sarkozy Nicolas Paul Stéphane Sarközy de Nagy-Bocsa ( ; ; born 28 January 1955) is a French politician who served as President of France from 2007 to 2012. In 2021, he was found guilty of having tried to bribe a judge in 2014 to obtain information ...
, the then minister of the interior.Grand Marshal and Aides for the 249th NYC St Patrick's Parade Installed
, January 16, 2010
* On March 17, 2010 Kelly was the Grand Marshal of the 249th New York City St. Patrick's Day Parade. * On March 14, 2012 Kelly was inducted into ''Irish America'' magazine's
Hall of Fame A hall, wall, or walk of fame is a list of individuals, achievements, or other entities, usually chosen by a group of electors, to mark their excellence or Wiktionary:fame, fame in their field. In some cases, these halls of fame consist of actu ...
.


See also

*
New York City Police Department The City of New York Police Department, also referred to as New York City Police Department (NYPD), is the primary law enforcement agency within New York City. Established on May 23, 1845, the NYPD is the largest, and one of the oldest, munic ...
* NYPD Cricket League


References


External links


On the Front Line in the War on Terrorism, ''City Journal,'' Summer 2007
* * , - , - , - {{DEFAULTSORT:Kelly, Raymond 1941 births United States Marine Corps personnel of the Vietnam War Archbishop Molloy High School alumni Catholics from New York (state) Clinton administration personnel Commissioners of the United States Customs Service New York City deputy police commissioners Harvard Kennedy School alumni Living people Manhattan College alumni Manhattan Institute for Policy Research New York City police commissioners New York City Police Department officers New York state athletic commissioners New York University School of Law alumni People from Island Park, New York People from the Upper West Side American recipients of the Legion of Honour St. John's University School of Law alumni United States Marine Corps colonels United States Marine Corps reservists American people of Irish descent Aftermath of the September 11 attacks Bear Stearns people