Every year, the city’s Department of Investigation issues bold and critical recommendations intended to help city government function more effectively and efficiently, as part of its agency probes. But increasingly, and especially under Mayor Eric Adams, the department is being downsized, the scale and scope of its investigative insights is diminishing and some of its […]
Department of Investigation
Posted inConstruction, Courts, Department of Investigation
Fake Safety Log Papered Over Construction Worker’s Life-Altering Injury, Suit Alleges
City Department of Investigation probing a supervisor’s allegation that her signature was forged on a contractor’s document filed to show safety procedures got followed.
Posted inBill de Blasio
Former Mayor Bill de Blasio Slapped With Record Fine Over Public Money for NYPD Detail
In response, de Blasio immediately filed a lawsuit against the board that had warned him against billing the city for police protection on his presidential campaign.
Posted inNYPD
NYPD Oversight Board May Halt Probes of Biased Policing Over Lack of Funding
Civilian Complaint Review Board interim chair Arva Rice said Wednesday that a new unit launched in October to investigate racial profiling and police bias won’t have enough funds to operate past June under the mayor’s proposed budget.
Posted inParks Department
Embattled Tree Bros Hang on to City Pruning Contract With DOI Monitorship
When the sibling owners of Dragonetti Brothers Landscaping were indicted in an insurance scam last year, tree maintenance in Brooklyn and Queens was put on hold. But the city Department of Investigation is working with Parks officials to rev up the chainsaws again.
Posted inPublic Safety
New NYPD Inspector General Faces Department Resistant to Recommended Reforms
Charles Guria takes on the official watchdog job with a strong resume but a weak hand, as Department of Investigation records show limited compliance with past directives for change.
Posted inNYCHA
Investigators Advised NYCHA Three Years Ago to Ban E-bikes. 25 Related Fires Later, It’s Finally Taking Action.
NYCHA declined to answer THE CITY’s questions about why it took so long to respond to the Department of Investigation’s suggestion.
Posted inJails
City Jail Officials Ignored Investigators’ Push to Modernize Record Keeping
Three years ago, the Department of Investigation recommended that the Department of Correction update its system of tracking violent incidents from old-school secret logbooks to a transparent digital system. Nothing has changed yet.
Posted inRikers Island
Cargo Hold: NYC Jails Official Sought to Ease Dress Code Established to Block Smuggling
Days after taking over the city’s beleaguered Department of Correction, a senior official under Commissioner Louis Molina sought permission to ease a rule banning officers from wearing cargo pants with multiple pockets, THE CITY has learned. The ban dates back to 2014 after an undercover city investigator was able to use those pockets to smuggle […]
Posted inBill de Blasio
De Blasio Blames His Failure to Pay 2017 Legal Bill on the 2020 Pandemic
Mayor Bill de Blasio is now blaming the pandemic for his failure to pay a major lobbyist law firm a six-figure legal bill that dates back to 2017. The mayor offered vague restitution promises on Thursday, saying he “intends” to pay the $435,000 he owes to the firm of Kramer Levin & Naftalis “over time.” […]