Gothamist
A non-profit newsroom, powered by WNYC.
Gothamist
Listen Live
News
"Not What I Signed Up For": De Blasio Staff Exodus Continues, As Mayor Stands By Police
By
Jake Offenhartz
Published Jul 31, 2020
Share
FacebookTwitterRedditEmail
Never miss a story
Email address
By submitting your information, you're agreeing to receive communications from New York Public Radio in accordance with our Terms .
Michael Appleton/Mayoral Photography Office
By
Jake Offenhartz
Published Jul 31, 2020
Share
FacebookTwitterRedditEmail
We rely on your support to make local news available to all
Make your contribution now and help Gothamist thrive in 2026. Donate today
Gothamist is funded by sponsors and member donations
At least six high-ranking staffers to Mayor Bill de Blasio have announced their departure from the administration this month, an ongoing exodus fueled in part by pandemic-era burnout and frustrations with the mayor's handling of anti-police brutality protests, according to some current and former City Hall employees.
"He is now completely letting the cops run over him and the entire city — and that is not what I signed up for," said one former staffer who recently stepped down.
Senior advisor Alison Hirsh left her position for similar reasons in June, Politico reported at the time, after her pleas to the mayor to rein in the NYPD were ignored. She now works as a senior advisor in the Department of Education.
This month's resignations include the mayor's longtime communications director, Wiley Norvell, and top spokesperson, Freddi Goldstein, both of whom had their last days on July 10th. The follow week, First Deputy Press Secretary Olivia Lapeyrolerie announced she was leaving for a job as vice president at SKDKnickerbocker, a public relations firm.
Deidrea Miller, the deputy communications director, also announced her exit for the private sector this month. De Blasio's chief speech writer, Jeff Sutton, is transitioning into a new role outside of the Mayor's Office, according to sources.
On Thursday, Jane Meyer, another deputy press secretary, became the latest staffer to jump ship, announcing she was taking a job next month as press secretary for Senator Amy Klobuchar.
A spokesperson for de Blasio brushed off the string of recent resignations as a normal turnover as the city enters a new stage of the COVID-19 crisis.
“It’s a natural time for transition, especially for staff who helped New York make it through a time of historic crisis," said spokesperson Bill Neidhardt, a recent hire who is now handling day-to-day operations in the press office. "They have passed along the torch and we’re excited to finish what they’ve started and transform New York for the better.”
Employees who spoke with Gothamist cited various reasons for leaving in this moment, including the grueling hours due to the COVID crisis, personal circumstances, and the feeling that they should not exit their positions too close to the end of the mayor's second and final term next November.
But multiple City Hall staffers said that the mayor's handling of the protests sparked by George Floyd's death factored into the decision to step down.
One former staffer pointed to the mayor's refusal to condemn the NYPD for the mass arrest of protesters in the South Bronx, where his own staffers were trapped and threatened by police officers in an operation described by NYPD Commissioner Dermot Shea as "executed nearly flawlessly."
Current staffers also described feeling demoralized by de Blasio's unwavering support of the NYPD and Commissioner Shea. After plainclothes officers were seen on video this week throwing a teenage activist into an unmarked minivan, one current aide wondered why the mayor hadn't pushed the NYPD to disavow the arrest.
"Why wasn't the van going after murder and shooting suspects instead of a person accused of criminal mischief?" the staffer wondered. "It's beyond reason."
While de Blasio later acknowledged the arrest was made at the "wrong time and place," leaders of the NYPD have continued to defend the decision, sparking protests and calls for Shea's resignation.
The mayor said on Thursday that there were no plans to discipline the warrant squad officers involved in that arrest, the officers who drove an SUV into a crowd of protesters, or the cops seen on video punching a homeless man on the subway.
Last month, more than 400 current and former staffers in the de Blasio administration signed an open letter denouncing the mayor's treatment of peaceful protesters, and accusing him of betraying his campaign promises to stand up to the police department.
Former and current mayoral aides said the internal dissent seemed to make little difference.
"There’s a disturbing disconnect between the police reforms de Blasio ran on as a candidate versus the police conduct de Blasio presides over as Mayor," said Rebecca Katz, a former advisor to de Blasio, who the mayor once described as the fifth member of his family. "What progressive can defend that?
Tagged
nypd
de Blasio
dermot shea
Jake Offenhartz
Jake Offenhartz is a former Gothamist reporter.
Read more
Gothamist is funded by sponsors and member donations
Gothamist is funded by sponsors and member donations
MORE news
ICE agent fires 7 rounds, shoots man in neck in NYC's Marble Hill, NYPD says
Police say the man arrived at a hospital in stable condition and a 5-year-old boy in his SUV is safe.
By
Giulia Heyward
and
Arya Sundaram
Published Oct 8, 2026 at 5:33 p.m. ET
Modified Oct 8, 2026 at 11:48 p.m. ET
Lazy drivers in Prospect Heights lose chance for 1 less day of alternate-side parking
A pilot found that drivers actually complied with alternate-side less when fewer days were in effect.
By
Liam Quigley
News
Lazy drivers in Prospect Heights lose chance for 1 less day of alternate-side parking
A pilot found that drivers actually complied with alternate-side less when fewer days were in effect.
By
Liam Quigley
Jersey City mayor shakes up staff amid $255M budget gap
By
Michael Sol Warren
Bronx residents will be exempt from new Medicaid work rule, state officials say
By
Caroline Lewis
MTA chair accuses Andy Byford, who's leading Penn Station rebuild, of going 'full MAGA'
By
Stephen Nessen
and
Carol Chen
Never miss a story
Catch up on the most important headlines with a roundup of essential NYC stories, delivered to your inbox daily.
Sign upEmail address
By submitting your information, you're agreeing to receive communications from New York Public Radio in accordance with our Terms .