Top city prober hit as big bully
Report: Abuse of power, intimidation
The city’s chief investigator used abusive and demeaning language in an inter-agency power play that blew up in his face, according to an independent inquiry released Wednesday.
The report by attorney James McGovern, a former federal prosecutor, focused on Department of Investigation Commissioner Mark Peters’ move early last year to take control of the independent schools Special Commissioner of Investigation.
McGovern detailed his findings in a 151-page report that started by declaring Peters made the power grab despite the objections of his own top deputies at DOI.
Most of the names and blocks of paragraphs were blacked out in the copy released to the public in response to a Freedom of Information Law request filed by media outlets.
“Even if Commissioner Peters sincerely thought that DOI’s takeover of SCI was legally justified, the manner in which he carried it out was sufficiently careless that it amounted to a potential abuse of his powers,” McGovern wrote.
While Peters claimed he made his plans to take over SCI public in multiple settings before he took action and no one complained, McGovern noted that he never revealed concerns about the legal justification for his actions.
McGovern, in particular, focused on a 10-minute “ultimatum meeting” Feb. 27 that Peters held in his office with then-SCI Commissioner Anastasia Coleman, who had balked at his takeover bid. Coleman — who appears to have recorded that meeting and others — was fired a month later when she refused to resign.
During the meeting, Peters’ tone was condescending and curt.
“Let me be really really clear,” he started, “because there apparently seems to be some lack of clarity, so I’m gonna make this extremely clear.” After making clear that Coleman was just an inspector general who had to report to his associate commissioner, Peters asked, “Is there anything I just said that’s unclear?”
McGovern also concluded that Peters had retaliated against Coleman, and found that she and one of her subordinates must be reinstated at full pay. That happened last week after news of McGovern’s report was revealed by DOI.
De Blasio press secretary Eric Phillips said Wednesday City Hall was reviewing the report. He declined to comment on whether de Blasio intends to move forward with his plan to terminate Peters.