BY SAL GRECO
The New York City Police Department is set to make another round of executive promotions, and among the names expected to move up the ranks is Terrell Anderson, who is slated to become a Deputy Chief, according to multiple reports and sources.
The promotion comes after a turbulent period in Anderson’s career, during which he became a central figure in the controversy surrounding the NYPD’s Candidate Assessment Division and, more recently, after questions emerged regarding planning for the 2026 Dominican Day Parade in the Bronx.
From Candidate Assessment to Department-Wide Controversy
Before his transfer, Anderson served as the commanding officer of the NYPD’s Candidate Assessment Division, the unit responsible for reviewing applicants before they entered the Police Academy.
In 2025, the New York Post reported that Anderson had been reassigned after an Internal Affairs investigation into the hiring of more than 70 recruits who allegedly had previously been disqualified during the hiring process. According to those reports, some applicants had failed psychological evaluations or character assessments before ultimately entering the department.
Subsequent litigation revealed that approximately 30 officers and recruits faced termination after the NYPD argued they should never have been hired. However, a court temporarily blocked those dismissals while the Police Benevolent Association challenged the department’s actions, arguing that many officers had already been serving successfully for months or even years.
The controversy generated lawsuits and significant debate over whether responsibility rested solely with Anderson or whether broader leadership decisions contributed to the situation.
What The Sal Greco Show Reported
According to sources , Anderson became the public face of the recruiting controversy while higher-ranking officials remained in place.
Sources close to the matter stated that after the hiring controversy became public, approximately 30 officers—including recruits, probationary officers, and officers already working patrol—faced possible termination before the matter was challenged in court by the PBA.
Sources further alleged, that Anderson quietly accepted responsibility for the controversy after being transferred and allegedly served departmental charges, while senior department leadership avoided similar consequences. Those allegations have not been independently verified.
The show also argued that Anderson’s reported promotion to Deputy Chief suggests that department leadership ultimately continued to have confidence in him despite the earlier controversy.
A Separate Earlier Internal Investigation
The promotion also follows an earlier disciplinary matter.
In 2021, the New York Post reported that Anderson faced internal departmental charges after allegedly failing to attend a required executive meeting while serving as an inspector. That matter was unrelated to the Candidate Assessment Division controversy but has resurfaced as observers review Anderson’s career ahead of his latest promotion.
The Sal Greco Show has consistently argued that Terrell Anderson has been treated far more harshly than many other NYPD executives caught up in departmental controversies. In the show’s view, Anderson became the public face—and ultimately the scapegoat—for the Candidate Assessment Division scandal, while responsibility extended well beyond a single commanding officer. The show contends that then-Chief of Personnel Joseph Benoit bore primary responsibility for overseeing the hiring process and that then-First Deputy Commissioner Tania Kinsella, who supervised the Personnel Bureau, carried the greatest executive responsibility during the unlicensed psychologist scandal that unfolded under Police Commissioner Jessica Tisch’s administration.
According to The Sal Greco Show, Anderson absorbed the professional consequences while higher-ranking officials largely escaped comparable accountability, making his reported promotion to Deputy Chief a notable development in light of how the controversy was handled.
Dominican Day Parade: Operational Success, Staffing Questions
According to the NYPD, officers recovered 16 illegal firearms and made 16 gun-related arrests during the event, a significant enforcement operation credited to precinct officers, Community Affairs personnel, and the Critical Response Team.
At the same time, The Sal Greco Show reported, citing unnamed department sources, that staffing for the event became a subject of internal criticism.
According to those claims:
- Chief of Department Michael “ Handsy “ LiPetri was responsible for determining overall staffing allocations.
- Chief of Patrol Phil Rivera oversaw operational planning as the incident commander.
- Bronx North Chief Castillo and Bronx South Chief Hennessy allegedly coordinated borough staffing and zoning.
- Sources cited by the show claimed the operational plan largely mirrored the previous year’s deployment despite differing conditions and allegedly did not include sufficient staffing for the 44th Precinct.
Those allegations have not been independently confirmed by the NYPD.
Despite those reported staffing concerns, officers successfully recovered numerous illegal firearms and completed the event without a large-scale breakdown in public safety, according to official police announcements.
Promotion Raises New Questions
The reported elevation of Anderson to Deputy Chief is likely to renew discussion about accountability within the NYPD.
Supporters have argued that Anderson became the focal point of a hiring controversy created by systemic issues within the department and note that courts prevented the immediate dismissal of many officers involved while litigation proceeded.
Critics, meanwhile, point to the Candidate Assessment Division controversy and prior disciplinary history as reasons to scrutinize the promotion.
Whether Anderson’s advancement represents confidence in his leadership or simply the latest chapter in a controversial career will likely remain a subject of debate. What is clear is that his name has been tied to several of the NYPD’s most closely watched personnel controversies over the past several years, and his promotion ensures those discussions are unlikely to end anytime soon.