Mayor Zohran Mamdani weighed in on NY1’s exclusive investigation.
“I believe any death deserves a thorough investigation,” he said.
The comments come after NY1’s investigation into Taser use at the NYPD. NY1 uncovered the death of Adrian Cevallos, who died after being shot with a Taser in front of his home in 2024 during a schizophrenic episode.
What You Need To Know
Mayor Zohran Mamdani says every death in custody deserves a thorough investigation
New York state Attorney General Letitia James is now investigating the death of Adrian Cevallos
Mamdani says he is examining whether Tasers should be used in mental health calls
The state attorney general is now investigating the case.
Even so, Mamdani was measured when discussing the use of Tasers by the NYPD.
“We also have to acknowledge when our officers are being placed in difficult situations and tasked with responding to mental health crisis as opposed to tackling serious and violent crime,” Mamdani said. “And so our focus is going to be both on reckoning with what the situation is currently and also chatting our new path forward.”
According to NY1’s investigation, Taser use at the NYPD has more than tripled in the last 10 years.
NY1 examined hundreds of reports detailing when the NYPD uses Tasers against people in mental health crisis.
And in many of those reports, the NYPD describes these weapons as being ineffective or deployed when someone is resisting or tensing up their body. The vast majority of people were unarmed.
Mamdani had proposed getting the police out of these mental health calls when campaigning. And he plans to create a new Department of Community Safety to do that.
But will cops still use these Tasers?
“I think that this is one of the many questions we are looking at when it comes to the Department of Community Safety,” the mayor said.