Meet the highest-ranking Orthodox Jew in the NYPD – a 9/11 hero who vows to fight anti-Semitic hate crimes

This police officer is a man with a mission.

The New York Police Department recently promoted the highest-ranking Orthodox Jew in police history – a 9/11 hero who wears a kippah at work – as the city battles a wave of anti-Semitic hate crimes.

Richie “Yechiel” Taylor was promoted to deputy director of the Community Affairs Bureau, the department’s sixth-highest position, in February and is now urging New Yorkers to show their religious pride.

“Don't change who you are. Don't take off your hijab, your cross, your turban or anything else you wear proudly that reflects your faith and your way of life,” Taylor, 42, told The Post.

“In this city, you don't have to hide who you are,” he said, adding that this also applies to Jews who wear the Star of David. “Be proud of who you are.”

The senior police officer, who reads the Torah and has five daughters ages 2 to 20, said the New York Police Department is working tirelessly to eradicate hate crimes.

“You are safe where you are. I lead by example – I wear my kippah in uniform,” he said. “Your NYPD has your back.”

Although his strict religious obligations include Shabbat from Friday to Saturday evening, his motto “always on call” is completely kosher under Jewish law.

The Torah principle of saving lives takes precedence over everything else, even on rest days – and Taylor considers answering emergency calls to be part of that exception, he said.

“Most of the time it's about missing people – children or the elderly,” he said, adding that on rest days the calls range from one per week to one per month. “I'm always on call, even on Shabbat.”

Taylor attended several yeshivas in Brooklyn as a child and knew from a young age that he wanted to help people, he said.

At the age of 15, he became a police detective in the 61st Precinct in Sheepshead Bay, Brooklyn. Three years later, he began working as an emergency medical technician and soon bravely responded to the World Trade Center before the towers collapsed on September 11.

In the hours after the attack, Taylor treated “dazed” members of the New York City Fire Department at the Hatzalah command post near Ground Zero, many of whom were devastated by the loss of colleagues.

He said he rinsed their eyes with sterile water, gave them fluids and did his best to provide them with emotional support.

“You do your best to be there for them – there was a lot of psychological first aid. In most cases you don't need oxygen or a bandage for first aid,” he said.

He later attended Touro University in Manhattan, married at age 20, and had children over the next two decades.

In 2005, at the age of 23, Taylor was sworn in as a police officer and served in over 10 police departments across the city throughout his career.

Before his promotion in February, Police Commissioner Edward Caban reportedly called Taylor a “mensch” and praised him as “the NYPD's ultimate ambassador, building bridges in good times and bad.”

Taylor's current mission is to “reach out to all communities, not just the Jewish community,” he told the Post.

“An attack on one community is an attack on all of us,” he said, adding: “No one in this city should be attacked because of the way they live.”

But the last few months have been particularly nerve-wracking for some Jews in the Big Apple: According to data obtained by The Post, the number of anti-Semitic hate crimes in 2024 increased by 45 percent compared to the same period last year.

As of last Sunday, 229 anti-Semitic hate crimes were reported to the NYPD this year, according to NYPD data. During the same period last year, there were 126 such incidents.

According to the data, hate crimes against Jews increased by 150 percent in May compared to May 2022, from 22 to 55 incidents.

While Taylor acknowledged that there was “real fear” among Jewish New Yorkers, he said they could rest assured that the perpetrators were no match for his brothers in blue.

“The New York Police Department is making arrest after arrest for anti-Semitic hate crimes,” Taylor said.

“NYC is safe for the Jewish community and we aggressively pursue all perpetrators of Jewish hate crimes.”

Taylor cited the case of 24-year-old Anas Saleh – an anti-Israel protester who allegedly stormed a subway car in the Big Apple in June and demanded that “Zionists” raise their hands – as an example of the deep fear hate criminals have of the New York police.

“He turned himself in because he knew the police were already looking for him,” Taylor said.

His arrest “shows that we will find you and you will be held accountable,” he said.

Saleh was charged with attempted coercion and released with a summons to appear in court, authorities said.

To any New Yorker considering leaving the city: “Don’t move an inch,” Taylor advised.

“This is what the terrorists and anti-Semites want,” he said. “We can defend ourselves by maintaining our lifestyle.”

He urged residents of the Big Apple to be “vigilant” – but said people could rest assured: “You are safe on the streets of New York City.”

Additional reporting by Natalie O'Neill