New NYPD chief of patrol is long-time police commander who faced on-the-job controversies
NYPD Chief Jeffrey Maddrey, seven years after a spurned lover and fellow cop pulled a loaded handgun on him during an ugly breakup, was named the NYPD’s new chief of patrol, department officials said.
As chief of patrol, Maddrey, who was chief of the NYPD’s Housing Bureau, will oversee all uniformed officers in the department.
He’s swapping spots with Chief Kathleen O’Reilly, who was named chief of patrol in January. O’Reilly will now be the new head of the Housing Bureau.
Maddrey, a longtime NYPD commander with ties to Mayor Adams, served as head of the Patrol Borough Brooklyn North command and the department’s community affairs division.
After Adams won election in November, Maddrey was expecting to be made chief of department, the NYPD’s highest-ranking uniformed position, police sources said.
But, at about the same time, a report surfaced that in 2021 he voided the arrest of a retired cop accused of pulling a gun on a group of children, sparking an internal NYPD probe.
Video of the clash at the heart of the voided arrest probe showed the retired cop — who was armed because of his security work ― did not threaten the teens, who instigated the confrontation.
But when Police Commissioner Keechant Sewell announced her new administration, Maddrey was named chief of the Housing Bureau.
In the earlier incident, a $100 million lawsuit was filed against Maddrey in 2016, with ex-girlfriend Officer Tabatha Foster alleging she was forced into an abusive sexual relationship with the superior officer. Additionally, Maddrey was accused of waving off police officers who responded when Foster allegedly pulled a gun on him in a Queens park.
Maddrey was docked 45 days pay after an internal NYPD probe, and the lawsuit was dismissed in 2019.
“Maddrey had a big cloud over him, so maybe it’s passed,” said one retired NYPD chief with knowledge of the shake up. “It’s a lateral move, but it’s more prestigious.”
Sewell called Maddrey “one of the best-known leaders in the NYPD,” as she announced the new appointment Friday.
“He has managed to blend his talents as an effective crime-fighter with his deep passion for community policing in a way that has touched so many police officers and citizens,” Sewell said in a statement.
O’Reilly began her career in Housing, Sewell noted.
In other executive moves, Sewell named Assistant Chief Ruben Beltran as commanding officer of the NYPD’s Information Technology Bureau. Deputy Chief Kevin Williams was also made commanding officers of Patrol Bureau Queens South.