New York’s Staten Island. Detective Jarrod Zinnanti’s walkout ceremony took place Monday at the southernmost police station house in New York State.
After 20 years of service, Zinnanti retired, and friends, family, and fellow cops gathered at the 123rd precinct in Tottenville to celebrate.
Growing up in Bensonhurst, Brooklyn, Zinnanti relocated to New Dorp at the age of eleven. He worked as a patient transporter at Staten Island University Hospital following his graduation from New Dorp High School.
Zinnanti remarked, “I decided to take the test for the NYPD because I was paying rent and other expenses and my friends were getting city jobs (working for the City of New York).”
He continued, “The more I considered it, the more I felt like I could do it as a job, and I really wanted to help people.”
Zinnanti entered the former police school on East 20th Street in Manhattan in January 2005 and took the oath of office to become a New York City police officer.
Six months after graduating, Zinnanti was posted to Tottenville’s 123rd precinct, where he would spend the rest of his career.
Zinnanti started out doing routine patrol work before being given the responsibility of driving a patrol sergeant, who in turn became the school sergeant for the precinct.
The school sergeant he had previously driven advised him to seek for the youth officer position when the precinct’s youth officer retired.
On January 27, 2025, Detective Jarrod Zinnanti and Sergeant Danny Murro held a walkout ceremony at the 123rd precinct in Tottenville to honor Zinnanti’s retirement. (The Staten Island Advance’s Owen Reiter)Reiter, Owen
During her five years as the youth officer, Zinnanti cultivated connections across the neighborhood. Danny Murro, a former student at Tottenville High School, would later have his path shaped by one of those ties.
According to Murro, who is currently a sergeant in the 120th precinct on Staten Island, Jarrod enlisted me in the Explorer Program, which functions similarly to the police department’s ROTC.
Jarrod works as a police officer. I used to see him in the 123rd precinct while I was growing up. He is intimately familiar with the location.
I seen him performing real police work and community relations work while I was an Explorer. He was well-versed in the community, which is now a crucial component of the work, Murro emphasized.
When Zinnanti was sent to the 123rd precinct as the commanding officer in June, Captain Gzim Palaj got to know him. I could tell straight away that he was well-liked by everyone in the town, not just his fellow officers.
These days, you switch orders as you advance through the ranks. This is where Jarrod worked his entire career. Can you picture all the connections he made, all the friendships he made, and all the people he knew in the community? It is something that should be valued because we never longer see it.
I will miss the chats we had. We would discuss topics like work, sports, and family when he came into my office. Since I support the Mets and Jets and he supports the Giants and Yankees, we have never agreed on sports.
We were always in agreement on family. Since it all boils down to his family, I respect him and understand why he is going.
Zinnanti served with Staten Island Borough Commander Assistant Chief Melissa Eger in 2008 as a lieutenant in the 123rd precinct. Jared was a young officer when I first met him, and I watched him grow into a polite, professional, and kind mainstay in the Community Affairs Bureau, said Chief Eger.
It was long overdue and well deserved that he was just upgraded with a specialty shield. Chief Eger continued, “You don’t see that knowledge and experience all the time.”
According to Police Officer Christina Bungay, who has known Zinnanti for ten years, “I learned a lot working with him, and he has a certain way of talking to people.” He showed me how to build ties in the neighborhood and introduced me to locals.
Although I’m glad he can go to New Jersey to be nearer to his wife’s family, I will regret our friendship. and maintain a regular routine to spend evenings and vacations at home with his children, Bungay continued.
“Jared really leaves nothing when he leaves this uniform because he’s made a great impact on so many people here,” said retired three-star Chief Joseph Fox, who was present at the ceremony.
He brings with him and his family a better Jared than when he first arrived. There is a lovely synergy that has occurred. Since family comes first, his departure serves as a true example and source of motivation for all of us. People talk about finding balance, but what he’s demonstrating is how committed he is to spending time with the family that he and Marissa created.
Zinnanti added, “I have the 123rd precinct to thank for having a terrific wife and two beautiful daughters,” as he bid everyone farewell.
I was asked if I wanted to meet her kid by Maria Lauro, a Police Administrative Aide at the precinct. The rest is history. I said yes.
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