[The top uniformed police officer in the New York Police Department has resigned amid allegations he demanded sex from a subordinate in exchange for opportunities to earn extra pay. Police Commissioner Jessica Tisch accepted the resignation of Chief of Department Jeffrey Maddrey Friday night, effective immediately. The department declined to comment on the allegations against Maddrey other than to say it “takes all allegations of sexual misconduct seriously and will thoroughly investigate this matter.”
A lawyer for his accuser, Lt. Quathisha Epps, said the move was overdue. “This should have been done a long time ago,” attorney Eric Sanders said by phone Saturday. “This has been years in the making, this kind of behavior. This is not shock for anyone who understands how things work in this department.”
On Saturday, Epps filed a complaint against the city with the federal Equal Employment Opportunity Commission, claiming that Maddrey engaged in “quid pro quo sexual harassment” by coercing her to “perform unwanted sexual favors in exchange for overtime opportunities in the workplace.” Epps was the department’s top earner in fiscal year 2024, earning more than $400,000, according to local media reports – more than half of it in overtime pay.
Epps was the subject of a department review after she pushed back at Maddrey’s demands, and she was subsequently suspended without pay despite putting in her retirement notice earlier this week. Sanders said his client has endured “profound harm at the hands of individuals who exploited their positions of power for personal gain” and that the retaliation she faced for standing up to this abuse underscores the need for immediate reforms to address systemic failures within the NYPD.
The Manhattan District Attorney’s office is investigating the allegations, and Mayor Eric Adams, a former police captain, called the allegations “extremely concerning and alarming.” Maddrey’s attorney, Lambros Lambrou, dismissed Epps’ claims as “completely meritless,” saying that any overtime Epps worked was at her own request and approved by Maddrey and other department officials.
Maddrey has been the subject of other misconduct allegations, including one from a police captain who says she rebuffed his unwanted advances for years. A former officer has also claimed Maddrey coerced her into a yearslong affair while he was her supervisor, though that case was dismissed by a state judge last month.
Tisch said in her statement that the interim Chiefs of Department and Patrol will continue to lead the efforts to reduce crime and disorder and build public trust. The NYPD works tirelessly to protect New Yorkers, and these roles are critical to keeping our communities safe, she said.
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