On Wednesday, a former commissioner for the New York Police Department (NYPD) filed a federal lawsuit against Mayor Eric Adams and several NYPD officials, alleging corruption within the nation’s largest police department.
According to the New York Times, former interim Commissioner Thomas Donlon alleges that during his brief time in the role, he “uncovered systemic corruption and criminal conduct being perpetrated by the NYPD’s leadership.” When he brought evidence of corruption to Mayor Adams’ attention, Donlon alleges Adams “condoned the misconduct” and allowed it to continue.
“Mayor Adams dismantled the NYPD’s chain of command and handed the department to a cabal of cronies and criminals,” said John Scola, a lawyer for Mr. Donlon. “The result is a demoralized force where integrity is punished.”
Donlon was appointed to the position in Fall 2024 to stabilize the department that had been rocked by several overlapping federal investigations. Donlon only served for a matter of weeks, as he resigned in November after federal agents searched his home for classified documents unrelated to their investigation into the NYPD.
This is the fifth lawsuit in two weeks alleging that the NYPD has engaged in corruption under Mayor Adams. Many of the allegations made in Donlon’s suit are similar to those found in the four separate lawsuits filed by four former NYPD officials last week.
From the New York Times:
One of the former officers, James Essig, who served more than 40 years, was chief of detectives until August 2023. He said in the suit that Edward Caban, the commissioner at the time, had forced him to resign after he objected to the promotions of unqualified officers to elite detective roles and specialized units.
Mr. Essig’s lawsuit, which names Mr. Caban, Mr. Adams and Jeffrey Maddrey, the former chief of department, accused Mr. Caban of selling promotions in exchange for $15,000.
Instead of relying on a list of candidates recommended by supervisors, Mr. Caban and Mr. Maddrey often picked “friends and cronies” of theirs and Mr. Adams, according to the suit.
In an interview, Mr. Essig, 63, said he wanted “accountability” for former leaders whose decisions “killed morale” and hurt the careers of dozens of police officers who were forced out or left the department because they were troubled about its direction.
Maddrey resigned in December after an officer accused him of coercing sexual favors in exchange for overtime opportunities, while Caban resigned as a result of a federal investigation into him and several other allies of Mayor Adams. Maddrey has denied all the allegations against him. Within each suit is a recurring theme of the former officers being demoted or forced to retire after bringing allegations of corruption and wrongdoing to Mayor Adams.
Donlon was the third of four commissioners who have served in the role during Mayor Adams’ tenure, with his time as commissioner having several parallels with former NYPD Commissioner Keechant Sewell’s brief time in the job. Sewell announced her resignation only 18 months into the role. While Sewell hasn’t made many public remarks about her time as commissioner, her close associates felt she was gradually becoming commissioner in name only, being unable to even make discretionary promotions without Mayor Adams’ approval.
Kenneth Corey, the former chief of the department, previously told the New York Times Sewell “was gradually being stripped of power…they had taken the power to make the most basic of decisions.”
In 2006, Adams retired from the NYPD as a Captain and has made the department a focal point throughout his term as mayor. Adams was previously indicted on a corruption case where it was alleged he received over $100,000 in flights and luxury hotel stays from Turkish nationals while serving in public office. Shortly after Trump took office, the Department of Justice moved to dismiss the charges as they felt the case would hamper Adams’ ability to enforce the Trump administration’s immigration agenda.
Obviously, Adams and his associates are presumed innocent until proven guilty. But y’all. There’s so much smoke here, it’s hard to be skeptical of a fire. With five separate lawsuits, a previous federal case about corruption, and a rotating door of commissioners, it can’t help but raise questions about what’s going on at the NYPD.
A spokesperson for Mayor Adams issued a statement denying Donlon’s corruption allegations. “These are baseless accusations from a disgruntled former employee who — when given the opportunity to lead the greatest police department in the world — proved himself to be ineffective,” Kayla Mamelak Altus, a spokeswoman for the mayor, told the New York Times. “This suit is nothing more than an attempt to seek compensation at the taxpayer’s expense after Mr. Donlon was rightfully removed from the role of interim police commissioner.”
Mayor Adams is currently running for re-election against surging Democratic Socialist Zohran Mamdani and former New York Governor Andrew Cuomo. Adams, who has made falling crime rates the focus of his reelection campaign, is currently trailing in the polls.
SEE ALSO:
Federal Judge Dismisses Corruption Case Against Eric Adams
Eric Adams Out Here Speaking The White Man’s English
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