FILE – Former interim Police Commissioner Thomas Donlon.
Photograph by Dean Moses
The lawyer for former interim Police Commissioner Thomas Donlon dispatched a letter to US Legal professional Normal Pam Bondi demanding that Trump’s Justice Division take over the NYPD, citing an alleged conspiracy contained in the division amid an ongoing authorized battle.
The letter dated Sept. 9, despatched from Regulation Workplace of John A. Scola, addresses Bondi immediately and refers to an inventory of prime police brass — together with Mayor Eric Adams, present Chief of Division John Chell, former Chief of Division Jeffery Maddrey, Deputy Mayor of Public Security Kaz Daughtry, former Deputy Commissioner of Public Data Tarik Sheppard, and extra. The doc means that the nation’s largest police drive is riddled with corruption and felony conspiracy and must be seized by the federal authorities with a purpose to “restore integrity.”
This comes after Donlon’s attorneys filed a July 16 lawsuit in opposition to the NYPD and metropolis, claiming that underneath Mayor Adams, the division has turn into “criminal to its core.” The go well with raised quite a few accusations in opposition to officers operating the division, together with acts of retaliation that noticed the arrest of Donlon’s spouse. Because the claims had been made, his lawyer asserted, no follow-up investigation has been made.
US Legal professional Normal Pam BondiREUTERS/Craig Hudson/File Photograph
“Since the filing of Donlon’s federal complaint on July 16, 2025, not a single law enforcement agency has contacted him or his counsel. That silence signals complicity from NYPD leadership, which has chosen to protect itself rather than confront criminal misconduct in its own ranks. By refusing even to open an inquiry into credible allegations of forgery, fraud, and racketeering, the nation’s largest police force has shown it is actively shielding its leadership and preserving a corrupt system from scrutiny,” Scola mentioned in an announcement. “To date, neither counsel nor Commissioner Donlon has been contacted. This refusal to act confirms that Internal Affairs and the NYPD’s oversight mechanisms serve as a shield for leadership, not as investigative bodies.”
Pushback in opposition to Donlon from the NYPD
Within the days following the preliminary lawsuit, these named within the go well with pushed again. Former Deputy Commissioner Sheppard advised New York News that he believed the motivations of the go well with to be timed with the mayor’s reelection bid and criticized Donlon as affected by reminiscence points and being a poor chief.
“He was a man who was going through some cognitive issues with his memory, he sort of believed that there was this conspiracy against him, and I thought he was suffering some kind of disorder, I honestly did,” Sheppard mentioned. “He couldn’t remember things, he was constantly like, almost in a fog, you know. … The executive staff knew that he was not equipped to be police commissioner.”
Different police sources additionally indicated that they believed Donlon is disgruntled with not being made everlasting police commissioner and as an alternative being changed by present prime cop Jessica Tisch.
In the meantime, Donlon’s authorized crew argued {that a} federal takeover of the NYPD would “protect” New Yorkers from corruption.
“This leaves only one path forward — the appointment of a federal monitor with sweeping authority, coupled with a comprehensive criminal investigation into NYPD’s leadership and immediate DOJ action to secure the forged records and related communications before they can be altered or destroyed,” Scola mentioned.
This comes amidst outrage over Trump’s troop occupation of Washington, DC and the specter of militarization in different cities similar to Chicago and New York. Tisch not too long ago mentioned she was “revolted” by the concept.
“As a lifelong New Yorker, I am revolted by the idea of the militarization of our streets,” Tisch mentioned on Sept. 8. “As long as I have the honor of serving as the Police Commissioner of the city of New York, I will be very clear with anyone, with all of you, with the Attorney General, with whoever wants to talk to me about it, about the fact that the NYPD: We’ve got this, we don’t need, or want the federal government’s help here in that way.”
New York News reached out to the NYPD for touch upon Donlon’s letter, and is awaiting a response.
