Civic Correspondence — NYPD Commendation Letter (September 20, 2024)

An open letter to the Office of the Commissioner of the New York Police Department commending Officers Sneed, Chavarria, and Morales of the 71st Precinct. The piece pairs disarming wit with documentary precision — a study in voice, civic accountability, and the kind of first-person reporting that turns a single encounter into a public conversation.

I write this letter with the sole purpose of doing something oft unheard of: singing the praises of the New York Police Department.

I write to extend my sincerest gratitude that the Office of the Commissioner exercised the most keen and shrewd judgment in the appointments of Police Officers Sneed (SN# 23385), Chavarria (SN# 27647), and Morales (SN# 9736). I am only regretful that the circumstances precipitating our engagement were anything but fortunate — and that distinction itself is worth expounding upon in this most unlikely letter.

I am a media professional and a native New Yorker who has called Brooklyn home my entire life. As a Black man in his forties who has never been arrested, never carried a warrant, and never sat under investigation, I credit nothing but God's infinite grace and unmerited favor — and I write from that unique vantage point with the sole purpose of singing the praises of the New York Police Department.

The story sets that rare melody to a familiar refrain. In March, my older brother returned to our family home after serving nine years of an eighteen-year sentence in Pennsylvania. Six months stayed mostly quiet on the home front — until they did not. After learning he had launched a campaign to push my parents into footing his custodial-support legal bill, I asked him to leave my name out of his fabrications. He responded that I needed to watch my step, that I was not built like that. I reported the threat to the 71st Precinct.

Officer Morales received the report with a calm, careful presence I will not forget. I told her I did not want to complicate my brother's parole — only to document the encounter should anything escalate. Two weeks later, Officers Sneed and Chavarria came to my home on a follow-up visit, simply to ask how I was doing and to walk me through every option available if I needed one. They responded to a historically difficult situation with proficient professionalism and a comprehensive compassion that the public conversation rarely associates with law enforcement.

To these officers, and to the supervisors who had the foresight to put them in the field, I assign my utmost respect, gratitude, and appreciation. As a media professional, I welcome the opportunity to explore creative ways to capture stories like mine for public consumption — so that more people see the side of the NYPD I have been blessed to encounter.

— Shannon J. Love