ITHACA, N.Y. — Former Acting Ithaca Police Chief John Joly has filed a lawsuit against several City of Ithaca officials alleging racial discrimination, retaliation, libel and more. The move comes almost a year after Joly announced his indefinite leave from the police department and his intent to sue.
The suit stems from Joly’s bungled appointment to lead the Ithaca Police Department (IPD) that unfolded in late 2022.
The allegations are largely the same that appeared in Joly’s Notice of Claim filed in March of last year. In that filing, Joly alleges former city Director of Human Resources Schelley Michell-Nunn improperly influenced the 2022 police chief hiring process against Joly because he is a white man. In court filings, Joly also alleges former Mayor Laura Lewis, former Alderpersons Jeffrey Barken, Cynthia Brock, George McGonigal and Jorge DeFendini and current Alderperson Ducson Nguyen engaged in discriminatory behavior.
Joly is seeking at least $750,000 in damages. He is still being paid as part of his leave, despite the fact that Ithaca has already hired a different permanent chief for the police department.
The origins of the lawsuit stem from December 2022, when then-Ithaca Mayor Laura Lewis decided to appoint Joly, who was the acting chief of police at the time, to the role permanently. Lewis selected Joly against the recommendation of the police chief selection committee, which voted in favor of former IPD lieutenant Scott Garin.
When Lewis’ choice became public, several Common Council members spoke out in opposition of the appointment on social media and in The Ithaca Voice. Shortly thereafter, Lewis rescinded the appointment.
Joly cites those comments as one of the primary motivations for the suit — in particular Brock’s statement that she did not believe Joly would be committed to stopping biases in policing and DeFendini’s statement that Joly has “expressed racist views.”
During a Common Council meeting, Joly condemned the remarks about him and blasted the hiring debacle. In March, he took an indefinite leave from the police department to “focus on maintaining [his ]own personal wellness” and said he intended to sue the city.
The suit largely focuses on Michell-Nunn’s role as leader of the selection committee and that she improperly favored Garin, a Black man. Michell-Nunn is also Black.
“Michell-Nunn is permitted to unduly influence meetings, interviews, committees, and personnel hiring and promotion decisions for the sole purpose of discriminating in favor of Black applications and against non-Black candidates,” Joly’s suit alleges. “Such conduct is unlawful, exceeds the authority of the Human Resources Department which she heads, and constitutes discrimination on the basis of race.”
Joly’s suit states he sent a letter to Lewis during the hiring process complaining about Michell-Nunn’s handling of the selection process, though the suit does not clarify whether Lewis responded.
Several sources have confirmed that the selection committee did overwhelmingly choose Garin over Joly and a third finalist, though that was ultimately rendered moot when Lewis attempted to appoint Joly instead.
Joly’s suit further argues that the appointment-turned-withdrawal constituted “intentional and/or reckless disregard for [Joly’s] reputation and good name,” humiliated his family and hurt future opportunities.
There are other incidents highlighted in the suit, though with more brevity than Joly’s allegations over the hiring process.
In December 2022, Brock and Nguyen received anonymous allegations that Joly and other IPD officers were committing overtime fraud. Brock and Nguyen shared the allegations with the Tompkins County District Attorney’s office, who referred the matter to New York State Police for investigation. In court filings, Joly argues Brock and Nguyen’s actions constitute defamation.
The New York State Police investigated the allegations and cleared the officers of wrongdoing early last year.
Brock previously addressed the overtime complaint, stating she felt it was her obligation as an elected official to pass along the allegations for proper investigation.
Joly is being represented by attorney A.J. Bosman, who also represented former Ithaca Police Department officer Chris Miller in a similar lawsuit against the city. Miller, a white police officer, alleged he was passed over for promotion solely because of his race.
After a decade of litigation, Miller and the city agreed to a settlement that paid Miller and his attorneys nearly $1 million over allegations the city retaliated against him after he complained to the state’s Division of Human Rights about racial discrimination. Miller’s discrimination claims were rejected, but the retaliation claim produced the settlement.
Bosman and Joly did not respond to requests for comment.
City Manager Deborah Mohlenhoff also declined comment, citing the city’s policy against commenting on litigation or personnel matters.
Others named in the suit contacted by The Ithaca Voice also declined to comment or did not respond to requests for comment. Of the five Common Council members named as defendants, none of them except Nguyen are still on council.
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