New York’s Finest: Retired & Unfiltered Podcast

An NYPD detective is robbed and stabbed in New York City, allegedly during an encounter involving suspects on a moped. It’s another disturbing incident raising questions about a style of street crime New Yorkers have increasingly seen involving mopeds, scooters and e-bikes—robberies, phone and jewelry snatches, assaults, and fast getaways through crowded city streets and sidewalks.

On this episode of New York’s Finest: Retired & Unfiltered, we break down the attack and ask a larger question: How did New York City allow this problem to develop and why has government struggled to get control of it?

We examine the enforcement challenges surrounding unregistered and illegal mopeds, repeat offenders, NYPD pursuits and enforcement restrictions, and whether NYC's elected officials have treated the problem with the urgency it deserves.

We also tackle one of the most controversial pieces of the story: New York City's sanctuary-city policies. What role does immigration status actually play in the moped-robbery trend? When suspects are undocumented, what restrictions exist on cooperation between NYC authorities and federal immigration officials? And do those policies allow offenders who might otherwise face immigration enforcement to remain in the city?

Rather than pretending every moped rider or migrant is responsible for crime, we're looking at the specific criminal networks and offenders exploiting mopeds as a tool to commit crimes—and whether NYC policies make apprehending, prosecuting, detaining and removing repeat offenders more difficult.

Also discussed:

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On this episode of The Finest Unfiltered we examine one of the most controversial chapters of post-9/11 policing in New York City: the NYPD’s intelligence and surveillance operations involving Muslim communities. We’ll break down what the program actually did, why supporters viewed intelligence gathering as an important counterterrorism tool after 9/11, and the civil-liberties and religious-profiling objections that ultimately surrounded the program.

Then we turn to NYC’s growing e-bike debate. The City Council held a marathon September 30 hearing examining 23 legislative proposals involving e-bikes, e-scooters and mopeds. Proposals include stronger enforcement, regulation of delivery services and restrictions on Class III e-bikes capable of exceeding 25 mph.

Finally, we break down the latest NYC crime picture. We explore the latest crimes and a viral police use if force video

Three major NYC public-safety debates. One episode. No talking points left unchallenged.

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Are NYPD unions using their political endorsements to build relationships in Albany—and are the pension bills they’re celebrating actually benefiting the majority of cops?

On this episode of New York’s Finest: Retired & Unfiltered, we examine the relationship between NYPD unions, Albany lawmakers, political endorsements and the pension legislation being passed in New York.

The latest example involves changes affecting the NYPD Police Pension Fund.

Tier 2 Final Average Salary: S.7808-A/A.8322-A changes the salary-base calculation for Tier 2 NYPD members hired on or after July 1, 2000. Instead of being limited to their final 12 months, eligible members can receive the more favorable calculation available to earlier Tier 2 members. Legislative actuarial estimates identified approximately 9,007 active members in the affected population as of June 30, 2025, but how many will actually choose this option?

Mandatory Retirement Age: S.5053-B/A.8178-B raises the mandatory retirement age to 65 for affected Tier 2 and Tier 3 NYPD members. Gov. Kathy Hochul signed the legislation on September 28, 2026.

We’ll ask how many cops actually benefit from these measures, how significant those benefits are to the overall membership, and how these legislative victories factor into the unions' political relationships.

Then comes the endorsement controversy.

The NYC PBA endorsed the Democratic challenger to State Senator Stephen Chan, despite Chan being a retired NYPD Sergeant and U.S. Marine with a public record emphasizing policing and public safety.

And there is another fact that makes this discussion particularly interesting: Chan himself co-sponsored the legislation raising the NYPD mandatory retirement age to 65.

So what explains the endorsement decision? What criteria does the PBA use? How much weight is given to legislation, incumbency, political relationships and other considerations?

We'll separate the documented legislation, endorsements and campaign support from the broader allegation of a political quid pro quo—which would require evidence beyond the existence of favorable legislation and subsequent political support.

Union money. Albany legislation. Pension benefits. Political endorsements.

We follow all of it and ask whether NYPD union political strategy reflects what rank-and-file members want from the organizations representing them.

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What is New York Attorney General Letitia James’ actual record on law enforcement and public safety?

On this episode of The Finest Unfiltered, we examine James’ record as New York Attorney General separating rhetoric from documented actions and looking at how her office has dealt with police, crime, accountability, and public safety.

We’ll discuss her office’s actions involving the NYPD and other New York law-enforcement agencies, including investigations of police conduct, use-of-force cases, proposed policing reforms, and the Attorney General’s Office of Special Investigation.

The record is more complicated than a single headline: James’ office has pursued police-misconduct matters and reforms, while OSI has also repeatedly concluded in individual cases that evidence did not support criminal charges against officers or that officers’ uses of deadly force were legally justified.

Topics include:

Letitia James’ record involving the NYPD

The Finest Unfiltered — law enforcement and NYC politics from the perspective of those who actually did the job.

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What exactly is going on with Mayor Zohran Mamdani’s influencer operation inside New York City government?

On this episode of New York’s Finest: Retired & Unfiltered, we break down the NYC Council oversight hearing examining the Mamdani administration’s communications with social-media influencers, including its use of Signal.

A January memo from Chief Counsel Ramzi Kassem told Mayor’s Office employees they “should not use WhatsApp, Signal, or any other communications app or platform for work.” Yet Signal was later used to communicate with a network of more than 200 influencers, and some messages were reportedly configured to disappear. At the Council hearing, lawmakers questioned the administration about transparency, record retention and the operation of the Office of New Media.

The administration has said City Hall does not pay influencers for interviews or engagements with Mayor Mamdani, while acknowledging that city agencies have contracted with influencers for other purposes.

PLUS: We break down two major NYPD stories:

A viral subway-platform video showing an NYPD officer apparently failing to immediately assist his partner during an encounter.

️ NYPD cops being directed to use 311 when dealing with homeless encampments — and what that means for officers and New Yorkers on the street.

Three stories. One question: What is happening inside New York City government and the NYPD?

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On this episode of New York’s Finest: Retired & Unfiltered, we tackle two major issues facing New Yorkers: public safety in the heart of Manhattan and the use of public-employee pension money to finance housing.

FIRST HALF — CRISTINA FONTANELLI

We’re joined by Cristina Fontanelli, candidate for New York State Assembly District 75 — a Manhattan district encompassing Times Square, Hell’s Kitchen, Chelsea, Hudson Yards and much of Midtown.

Fontanelli is a lifelong New Yorker, award-winning opera singer, actress, television host and nonprofit founder who is making the jump from the stage to politics.

We’ll discuss the recent violence in Times Square and what she believes Albany can actually do about public safety.

Among the issues:

• Supporting law enforcement

And we’ll ask the fundamental question behind her campaign:

Why leave a successful career in entertainment and run for office now?

Campaign information:

SECOND HALF — YOUR PENSION, NYC'S HOUSING PLAN

NYC Comptroller Mark Levine and trustees representing four NYC pension systems have committed $300 MILLION in new pension capital to the AFL-CIO Housing Investment Trust to finance housing construction and preservation.

Among the participating funds:

• New York City Police Pension Fund

The commitment is part of a broader initiative to invest $4 BILLION in pension capital in housing over four years.

The city argues these investments can produce competitive, risk-adjusted returns for pensioners while simultaneously helping address New York's housing shortage.

But we're going to ask the questions every cop, firefighter and city worker should be asking:

Whose money is it?

Who makes these investment decisions?

What role does the Mamdani administration play?

What fiduciary obligations do pension trustees have to members?

What has the historical performance of these investments been?

And where is the line between making an investment for pensioners and using pension capital to advance government policy?

We're following the money.

SOURCE — NYC Comptroller:

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Is the NYPD Police Pension Fund properly protecting taxpayer money—or has a broken system allowed pensions to be improperly calculated?

On this episode of New York’s Finest: Retired & Unfiltered, we break down two major NYC Department of Investigation reports released just days apart examining the NYPD Police Pension Fund.

First, DOI examines NYPD accident-disability pensions, finding vulnerabilities in how disability applications are evaluated and how rarely disability retirees are medically re-examined. DOI reported that the PPF paid approximately $935 million in accident-disability benefits in FY2025, including more than $100 million to officers who had not yet reached their normal retirement eligibility.

We discuss the cases highlighted by DOI involving senior NYPD officials, including former Chief of Department John Chell and former Chief of Training Juanita Holmes, and the larger question: Should an NYPD executive seeking disability retirement be evaluated on the physical requirements of a street cop or the actual duties of the position they performed?

Then we examine DOI's investigation into NYC Charter Section 821, which can preserve Police Pension Fund rights when eligible NYPD members move into certain civilian or exempt government positions.

DOI says administrative errors and inconsistent practices resulted in some pensions being higher than what recipients were entitled to under DOI's interpretation of the law. The report specifically addresses Louis Molina, Eugene Whyte, Edelle James, Juanita Holmes, Kaz Daughtry, Luis Martinez, Kenneth Morgan and Lamona Knight and recommends that several pension calculations be corrected.

One striking example: DOI says Kaz Daughtry signed an agreement excluding his exempt-position salary from his pension calculation. DOI reports that honoring the agreement would have produced an estimated annual retirement allowance of $100,505.19 rather than the $153,199.25 he currently receives.

Two reports. Two different pension issues. One Police Pension Fund.

Are these examples of individual wrongdoing, administrative failures, inconsistent rules—or a pension system desperately in need of clearer oversight? We separate what DOI actually established from the allegations and ask what these proposed changes could mean for both NYPD executives and rank-and-file cops.

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Are New Yorkers getting the full story about crime in New York City?

On this episode of New York’s Finest: Retired & Unfiltered, we break down yesterday’s NYC Council Public Safety Committee hearing on NYPD crime statistics.

Council members questioned NYPD officials about crime trends across the five boroughs, including the fact that while murders and shootings have fallen substantially, overall major felony crime remains above 2019 levels. The hearing also examined allegations that some New Yorkers have been discouraged from filing police complaint reports—raising questions about how crimes are reported, classified and ultimately reflected in the city’s official statistics.

PLUS — SPECIAL GUEST SARITHA KOMATIREDDY

At the beginning of the show, New York Attorney General candidate Saritha Komatireddy joins us to discuss her proposal to establish an Office of Civil Commitment.

Komatireddy says the proposed office would bring together law-enforcement professionals and physicians to address cases involving people with severe mental illness who meet New York's legal standards for involuntary commitment. The proposal has also drawn criticism from some mental-health advocates, who question the role of law enforcement and the practical scope of such an office.

We’ll ask Saritha how the office would actually work, who would qualify for intervention, what authority the Attorney General has, and whether the proposal could address the cycle of people with serious mental illness repeatedly entering and leaving the criminal-justice and mental-health systems.

Then we go inside the NYC Council hearing: crime stats, complaint reports, NYPD staffing, the Bronx, felony assaults, shootings, murders—and the question at the center of it all:

Do the statistics tell the entire story of crime in New York City?

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On this episode of The Finest Unfiltered, the crew, sits down with nationally recognized criminal defense attorney Thomas A. Kenniff the attorney who helped secure the acquittal of Marine veteran Daniel Penny and who is now representing former NYPD Police Officer Omar Habib.

We take a deep dive into the Omar Habib case, his conviction, and the controversial NYC law at the center of the fight: Administrative Code §10-181, commonly called the Anti-Chokehold Law or Diaphragm Law.

The law makes it a misdemeanor during an arrest to restrict air or blood flow through compression of the windpipe or carotid arteries, or by sitting, kneeling, or standing on someone's chest or back in a manner that compresses the diaphragm.

We'll ask Tom Kenniff what comes next for Omar, what legal issues he sees in the case, and whether Local Law 10-181 creates an impossible standard for police officers attempting to physically control resisting suspects.

Kenniff also joins us to discuss his new novel, Tuxedo Park, a legal-political thriller drawing on his decades of experience inside the criminal justice system. The book was published by Post Hill Press and distributed by Simon & Schuster on August 18, 2026.

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Also joining us is retired Sergeant Betsy Brantner Smith, spokesman for the National Police Association, to discuss the NPA's extraordinary request that the U.S. Department of Justice Civil Rights Division investigate the prosecution and conviction of Omar Habib.

The NPA is asking DOJ to examine whether the application of §10-181 in Habib's prosecution violated his federal constitutional rights, including questions involving due process, fair notice, police justification and equal treatment under the law. The organization has also asked federal investigators to examine the law's enforcement history and compare Habib's prosecution with other NYPD use-of-force incidents.

NATIONAL POLICE ASSOCIATION:

SUPPORT OMAR HABIB'S LEGAL DEFENSE & APPEAL:

This isn't simply a discussion about one police officer. It's a discussion about what happens when officers are ordered to make arrests, control resisting suspects and use reasonable physical force — while facing criminal prosecution over the mechanics of that struggle.

Can NYPD officers still police proactively under Local Law 10-181?

And after Daniel Penny, can Tom Kenniff help Omar Habib win the next fight?

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On this episode of The Finest Unfiltered, former NYPD Police Officer Nancy Chinchilla and her attorney Christina Martinez join us to discuss Nancy’s fight against NYC’s COVID-19 vaccine mandate.

Nancy was terminated from the NYPD after refusing to comply with the vaccine mandate after her request for a religious accommodation was denied.

She fought back in court.

As the case approached trial, the NYPD reached out to settle — with an agreement providing back pay and pension credit bringing Nancy up to 20 years of credited service.

Why did the NYPD settle before trial?

What was the basis for denying Nancy’s religious accommodation?

And most importantly: Could this settlement have implications for other NYPD officers and NYC employees who were terminated over the vaccine mandate?

We hear directly from Nancy Chinchilla and attorney Christina Martinez about the case, the settlement, and the years-long fight that brought them to this point.

ABOUT CHRISTINA MARTINEZ

Christina Martinez is an attorney licensed in New York and New Jersey whose practice focuses on employment discrimination, civil rights, vaccine exemptions, medical freedom and religious liberty. Martinez graduated magna cum laude from Brooklyn Law School in 2014 and has been involved in major COVID-19 civil-rights litigation across the country. According to her law firm, she has won 14 lawsuits on behalf of NYC workers terminated in connection with the City’s COVID-19 vaccine mandate.

To learn more about Christina Martinez or contact her for a consultation:

https://www.exemptionlawyer.com/

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