A look at NYPD First Deputy Commissioner Tania Kinsella’s complaint history

The New York City Police Department’s new top officials made history on Monday, with Commissioner Edward Caban becoming the first Latino to lead the department, and First Deputy Commissioner Tania Kinsella becoming the first woman of color to hold that position.

With a combined 52 years in the department, both have a history of complaints against them. The City earlier reported that Caban, a 32-year veteran of the NYPD, had previously been accused of threatening and using foul language during a stop and frisk in 2006. Caban was found to have wrongly issued a retaliatory summons to the man for disorderly conduct, but the other allegations were unfounded. He was also accused along with other sergeants of cheating on an exam back in 1994, the New York Post reported last year. Caban was found not guilty, though an internal NYPD judge cited “very strong” evidence that answer sharing had occurred. “Decades-old allegations – nearly all of which have been disproven or made without merit – do nothing to tarnish his exemplary reputation among the many cops and communities with whom he has served,” a department spokesperson told the Post.

In her 20 years with the department, Kinsella has also faced several misconduct allegations investigated by the police oversight watchdog the Civilian Complaint Review Board, but none have been substantiated. Allegations of discourtesy, offensive language and abuse of authority in two complaints in 2006 and 2007 were eventually ruled unfounded or unsubstantiated by the CCRB. Investigating an allegation of improper use of physical force in the 2006 complaint, the CCRB found that Kinsella’s actions were within department guidelines.

A more recent complaint, in October 2020, alleged that Kinsella abused her authority by entering and searching a premises and not showing an arrest warrant. Complaint records obtained by City & State describe an incident in which 20 officers, including Kinsella, entered a residence on Staten Island early in the morning. Some officers allegedly pointed guns at the complainant and her children, and handcuffed her daughter, according to the partially redacted records. The complaint alleges that officers never explained why they were there, but notes that another person was arrested during the incident on a warrant for possessing a firearm. The complaint says the firearm wasn’t recovered and that case was dismissed.

The complaint was marked by the CCRB as “closed - pending litigation,” however. The closing report indicates that the fiancé of the complainant “had an open criminal case regarding the incident,” and the complainant chose to have the investigation closed until the conclusion of that case. But the CCRB works with a statute of limitations of 18 months – which in this case ended in 2022 – and cases can only be reopened past that time frame if there is an allegation that could constitute a crime.

A spokesperson for the NYPD reiterated that complaints against Kinsella had been unfounded, unsubstantiated or closed. “The CCRB allegation of illegally entering a premise was closed- pending litigation as the complainant or victim chose not to cooperate with the investigation on the advice of counsel,” a spokesperson wrote in an email. 

Kinsella was also named in a dismissed 2020 lawsuit against the city from an NYPD sergeant that alleged discrimination and a hostile work environment. A judge dismissed the claims in the case in 2021.

Kinsella’s appointment was praised by Staten Island leaders including District Attorney Michael McMahon and former City Council Member Debi Rose.