STATEN ISLAND, N.Y. — A chief investigator at New York City’s Probation Department was allegedly fired from her job after she blew the whistle on her boss’s affair with an employee.
Ebony Huntley filed a “filed a wrongful termination lawsuit in Manhattan Supreme Court on Thursday laying out the accusations against Department of Probation Commissioner Sharun Goodwin, who was appointed by Mayor Zohran Mamdani in late January,” according to Politico.
Huntley alleges that she received an anonymous complaint from a worker in the department that Goodwin was in a “prior intimate relationship” with Wayne McKenzie, a member of the department’s general counsel.
McKenzie joined the general counsel after Goodwin was appointed to the Department of Probation.
In an interview with Politico, Huntley said the worker was concerned that Goodwin and McKenzie’s alleged affair “may present a conflict of interest and impact impartial decision-making.”
The complaint made by the staffer also expressed concerns about Human Resources Director Zenia Melendez. Melendez is “accused of having a history of ‘verbal and physical violence’ against staff,” Politico reported.
Huntley passed along the complaint to the Department of Investigation.
Discussing the report with Probation Department attorney Brandon Smith, Smith allegedly told her that he would alert McKenzie of the report mentioning his name.
“Huntley says she told Smith he shouldn’t do that, given McKenzie was named in the complaint, but Smith allegedly replied: ‘This is not like the old days where you don’t share information,’” Politico wrote.
A day after her submission to the Investigation Department, Huntley said she was invited to a meeting led by McKenzie. He discussed the report with her, according to Politico, before allegedly saying, “I cannot have a person like Ebony working for me. Effective immediately, you are terminated… you can’t work for me. I am disappointed in you, Ebony. I thought you had more integrity.”
Her termination was signed by Melendez.
Mayor Zohran Mamdani’s comment on the matter was the following: “I’m not going to be weighing in on any ongoing investigation. However, New Yorkers should rest assured that there is an investigation.”
He assured reporters that “any allegation of misconduct incredibly seriously.”
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