Ex-NYPD commissioner accuses NYC mayor of 'character assassination' in $10 million defamation claim
The filing comes less than a week after the ex-commissioner, Thomas Donlon, sued Adams and his top deputies, accusing them of operating the department as a criminal racket that rewarded unqualified loyalists and punished whistleblowers. Donlon said he was sidelined for trying to clean up the corruption.
After that lawsuit was filed, Adams privately told members of a nonprofit business advocacy group at a meeting that he'd fired Donlon, 71, from his brief stint as commissioner last fall because he was 'rapidly deteriorating mentally,' according to attendees. Donlon cited news reports about those comments in his legal claim.
The department's former top spokesperson, Tarik Sheppard, who was also named in Donlon's lawsuit, told reporters that his former boss was 'going through some cognitive issues' and believed 'there was this conspiracy against him.'
Their comments amounted to a defamatory 'public character assassination' intended to 'weaponize mental health to silence a whistleblower,' Donlon's attorney, John Scola, said Monday.
Donlon, a former FBI official, was appointed by Adams in September to lead a department reeling from overlapping federal investigations and high-level resignations.
He was replaced by the current commissioner, Jessica Tisch, in November. During his short tenure, federal authorities searched Donlon's home for decades-old documents that he said were unrelated to his work at the department. He has not been publicly accused of wrongdoing in connection with that search.
In his short time as commissioner, Donlon said he uncovered 'systemic corruption' by members of the mayor's inner circle, including a scheme to reward unqualified loyalists with lucrative promotions in exchange for political favors.
In his lawsuit, Donlon accused Sheppard of misappropriating the commissioner's rubber stamp signature to give himself a raise, then threatening to kill Donlon when confronted about it.
Sheppard, who left the department in May, has denied that allegation. Inquiries to City Hall about the defamation claim were not immediately returned.
In a statement last week, a spokesperson for Adams, Kayla Mamelak Altus, described Donlon's claims as 'absurd.'
'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,' she said.
The defamation claim adds to a recent spate of litigation brought by police officals against Adams, focusing scrutiny on his leadership as he seeks re-election on a platform emphasizing managerial competence and public safety.
Earlier this month, four high-ranking former NYPD officials brought separate lawsuits accusing Adams and his deputies of allowing rampant corruption and cronyism within the police department.
In response to those suits, a spokesperson for Adams said the administration 'holds all city employees — including leadership at the NYPD — to the highest standards.'
Hashtags

Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Yahoo
4 minutes ago
- Yahoo
Father of 3 Marines who was forcibly detained by immigration agents speaks out
An undocumented father of three Marines who was forcibly detained by federal immigration agents while at his landscaping job in California last month spoke out for the first time on Friday in emotional, tearful remarks. Customs and Border Patrol agents arrested Narciso Barranco in Santa Ana on June 21, according to the Department of Homeland Security. Video of him being forcibly detained showed masked agents holding him down on the street and repeatedly punching him after he ran from agents. He is currently out on bond after being released from federal custody on July 15 and has an immigration status hearing in August, according to Orange City Council officials. During a press conference in Santa Ana surrounded by local officials and leaders, Barranco thanked the community and his family for their support. "I love you all and I am very proud of you," he said to his children in Spanish. To his wife, Marta, he said, "Thank you for your strength, love, and for never stopping believing in me." MORE: Marine veteran addresses Congress after father forcibly detained by immigration agents Barranco also spoke to the families of other detainees he met while in custody. "I want to tell their families they have faith, they miss you all, and even in that place, they have hope," he said. Barranco asked of federal authorities, "Please, don't take away the opportunities for them to reunite with their families." Lisa Ramirez, a founding partner of US Immigration Law Group and Barranco's legal representative, said his story is not an isolated case. "What I think we can all learn from this one story is that there are hundreds and soon to be millions of people like Mr. Barranco who have been long-standing contributors to our country, who will also be arbitrarily arrested and detained," she said. The Department of Homeland Security said following the arrest that Narciso Barranco is in the country illegally and that he tried to evade law enforcement, "swung a weed whacker directly at an agent's face" and resisted commands. "The agents took appropriate action and followed their training to use the minimum amount of force necessary to resolve the situation in a manner that prioritizes the safety of the public and our officers," DHS Assistant Secretary Tricia McLaughlin said in a statement at the time. MORE: Millions of undocumented immigrants will no longer be eligible for bond hearings, according to ICE memo One of Barranco's sons, Marine veteran Alejandro Barranco, told Congress members this week that his father got scared after the masked agents approached him while he was at work. "As he worked, he noticed masked men approaching him, and was quickly surrounded by men who did not identify themselves and never presented any type of warrant," he told Democratic members of the House Committee on Homeland Security during an oversight forum examining the Trump administration's detention and deportation practices on Tuesday. "Terrified, he ran. They chased him through the parking lot and into a crowded street. They pointed guns at him, pepper-sprayed him. They tackled him to the ground and kicked him." He said his father, who has two other sons who are currently serving as Marines, has no criminal record and "should have never been attacked by these agents." "He supported his family and paid taxes," the veteran said. "He is a human being, but he was not treated with the basic dignity he deserved."


CBS News
6 minutes ago
- CBS News
Federal judge dismisses Trump administration lawsuit over Illinois sanctuary laws
A U.S. district court judge has dismissed a lawsuit filed by the Trump administration against the state of Illinois and multiple jurisdictions over their sanctuary laws. Illinois signed the Trust Act into law in 2017 under Republican governor Bruce Rauner, instructing state and local law enforcement not to cooperate with U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement in cases of civil immigration enforcement activities. The act does not prohibit law enforcement from cooperating with ICE for cases involving a criminal warrant or other court order. In the decision, the judge granted Illinois' motion to dismiss on the basis that the Trump administration "lacks standing to sue them with the respect to the Sanctuary Policies." The judge also dismissed a lawsuit against the Cook County Board of Commissioners because it's not a separate entity from Cook County in such a way to make it suable. The lawsuit was dismissed in its entirety without prejudice, and the Trump administration can amend its complaint and file again by a separate, undisclosed date, the ruling said. The judge said if an amended lawsuit is not filed by that date, this one will convert to being dismissed with prejudice. Gov. JB Pritzker responded to the lawsuit's dismissal on social media, posting, "Illinois just beat the Trump Administration in federal court. Their case challenging the bipartisan TRUST Act was dismissed — unlike the President, we follow the law and listen to the courts." In a further statement from the governor's office, Pritzker added, "This court ruling shows what we already knew: Illinois' law has always been and still is compliant with federal law. Illinois ensures law enforcement time and energy is spent fighting crime -- not carrying out the Trump Administration's unlawful policies or troubling tactics." The White House has not issued a statement or released any comment in reaction to the court's decision.


Fox News
6 minutes ago
- Fox News
Trump's executive order on birthright citizenship blocked by another federal appeals judge in latest ruling
A federal appeals judge on Friday blocked President Donald Trump's plan to end birthright citizenship for the children of people in the country illegally or temporarily. U.S. District Judge Leo Sorokin ruled that a nationwide injunction on the Trump administration's effort to end birthright citizenship that he issued earlier this year and that was granted to more than a dozen states can stand. Sorokin said the ruling was an exception to a recent U.S. Supreme Court ruling that limited lower courts' ability to issue nationwide injunctions. The issue is expected to return to the Supreme Court. Trump and the administration "are entitled to pursue their interpretation of the Fourteenth Amendment, and no doubt the Supreme Court will ultimately settle the question," Sorokin wrote in his ruling. "But in the meantime, for purposes of this lawsuit at this juncture, the Executive Order is unconstitutional." The Trump administration has argued that children born in the U.S. to parents in the country illegally and temporarily are not "subject to the jurisdiction" of the United States and therefore not entitled to citizenship. Trump signed the birthright citizenship executive order, along with a slew of other orders, on his first day in office in January. On Wednesday, the San Francisco-based 9th Circuit Court of Appeals also affirmed the lower court's nationwide injunction, and, earlier this month, a New Hampshire federal judge issued a ruling prohibiting Trump's executive order from taking effect nationwide in a new class-action lawsuit. Sorokin disagreed with the Trump administration's argument that the Supreme Court's ruling warranted a narrower ruling. The plaintiffs in the class-action lawsuit argued that Trump's executive order is unconstitutional because the 14th Amendment guarantees birthright citizenship, and it also threatens millions of dollars in state funding for "essential" health insurance services contingent on citizenship status.