Our city cops, in title only

April 7, 1997

In a mayoral election where at least two candidates have raised the issue of residency requirements for police brass, here's a look by Newsday at where the top NYPD commanders live.

Since it is never the intention of this column to embarrass anyone, let's just say that the newly-appointed first deputy commissioner lives in upstate Orange County and the chief of department lives in Rockland. Of the nine bureau chiefs listed in the department roster, the chief of the transit bureau, the chief of the organized crime control bureau and the chief of personnel all live in Westchester. The supervising chief surgeon lives in Nassau.

The other bureau chiefs - Chief of Patrol Wilbur Chapman, Chief of Internal Affairs Charles Campisi, Chief of Criminal Justice Charles Reuther, Chief of the Housing Bureau Jules Martin and Chief of Detectives William Allee - live in the city.

Of the 17 assistant chiefs, nine live in the city, according to department records. Among the eight living outside New York are the borough commanders of the Bronx, Manhattan, Queens North and Brooklyn South.

Of the 27 deputy chiefs (a rank that in the NYPD is below assistant chief), 14 live in the city, 13 live outside it. At the lesser rank of inspector, 32 of the 64 live outside the city. Of 111 deputy inspectors, 65 - or 59 percent - live outside the city.

An estimated 45 percent of all New York cops live outside the city.

While political support in Albany for their union allows police officers, like members of other uniformed services, to live anywhere in the state, Democratic mayoral candidate Fernando Ferrer notes that the NYPD can require all top police officials to live in New York City. This is because all positions above captain are filled at the commissioner's discretion.

Speaking of Commissioner Howard Safir, he has a Manhattan apartment, while his investigative and consultant firm, Safir Associates, of which he says he divested himself, is in his wife's name in Virginia. ---

Howard's Health. It's been a month since Commissioner Safir's open-heart surgery. And after tooling around the St. Patrick's Day parade in a chauffer-driven golf cart just 10 days after surgery, Safir has now become less visible.

Those who have seen him - (Safir doesn't provide a public schedule) - have described him as "mellow," "pale" and "tired."

A person familiar with his case describes him as "one hundred percent," adding, "He's not pushing himself but, as is expected after these type operations, he can become tired in the afternoons. He did not have a heart attack. It can take three months or more to recover from this type of operation."

Leave it to Louie. Chief of Department Louis Anemone became so exercised when he arrived at an ACT-UP demonstration in Lower Manhattan last month that he ordered 74 demonstrators arrested and put into police vans, charging them with disorderly conduct. In his anger, Anemone allowed seven to be transported with no designated arresting officer. Since it's against the law to charge someone without an arresting officer present who can verify that the crime actually occurred, the seven were released when they reached Police Plaza and their arrests were voided.

Tosano Goes. First Deputy Commissioner Tosano Simonetti left Police Plaza last week after 40 years as a cop. A decent man, he spoke from the heart last month at a promotion ceremony, honoring Police Officer Charles Davis, who was killed while moonlighting in a Queens check-cashing store. He told Davis' widow the police department would "never forget" her husband, words that could apply to Simonetti as well.

Manifest Destiny. Los Angeles Police Commission spokesman Ken Ferber says L.A. has launched a nationwide search for a new police chief. Although our ex-commissioner William Bratton has too much pride to apply, many at Police Plaza believe it would be a crime for the citizens of that city to be deprived of the opportunity to be policed by the man his agent refers to as the greatest law enforcement official of the decade, if not the century. Therefore, this column is taking it upon itself to apply for him.

Age: 49. Married to Cheryl Fiandaca, star legal reporter.

Current job: President of First Security Consulting, a position he once disdained as "Joe Blow Security."

Last job: NYPD police commissioner.

Highlights: Cover of Time magazine.

Reason for departure: Cover of Time magazine.

Strength: Friends with L.A. Mayor Richard Riordan.

Weakness: Schnorred from rich friends, accepting free trips and a $400 pistol, although he did pay the money back.

Danger: Cheryl says she's not going.