City Council Member Vickie Paladino is facing legal threats and calls for a City Council ethics investigation after the partner of slain Brooklyn activist Ryan Carson accused the Queens Republican of making false and inflammatory statements that she says endangered her safety.
In a cease and desist letter sent July 16 to Paladino, attorney Maryanne K. Kaishian alleges that the lawmaker used her social media account to spread misinformation about Claudia Morales’ actions following Carson’s 2023 murder in Brooklyn.
“Your misuse of elected office to defame a private citizen for political gain has forced Ms. Morales to seek legal representation, and we are formally demanding that you cease and desist all such communications concerning our client and issue a public apology for your defamatory statements,” Kaishian wrote.
Kaishian said Paladino’s remarks were prompted after Morales, a political activist, posted a photo with Democratic mayoral nominee Zohran Mamdani on July 12.
Paladino — who gained fame in 2017 by yelling at then-Mayor Bill de Blasio in a viral video and has a history of provoking controversy — has recently faced criticism for doubling down on calls for Mamdani’s deportation.
“She has a very long and well-documented history of behavior like this,” Morales told amNewYork. “This was something done knowingly and deliberately … it is deplorable and dangerous for her to do so within her position and influence, and responsibility as an elected official.”
Paladino’s office did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
‘Re-traumatized’
Brian Dowling, 18 at the time, fatally stabbed Ryan Carson in the early hours of Oct. 2, 2023, as he and Morales waited at a bus stop on Malcolm X Boulevard and Lafayette Avenue after attending a friend’s wedding.
Dowling was arrested days after the unprovoked killing and was sentenced in February to 20 years to life in prison.
Kaishian said Paladino falsely claimed Morales delayed calling 911 because of her political beliefs and interfered with the investigation to protect the suspect.
In a now-deleted post on X, formerly known as Twitter, Paladino wrote that Morales “didn’t immediately call the police because the murderer was nonwhite and her politics dictate that police are the real evil.”
According to Kaishian, Morales immediately called for help, “desperately” attempted to render first aid, and fully cooperated with law enforcement, including testifying before a grand jury that indicted Dowling.
The letter also criticized Paladino for allegedly claiming that Morales made herself a “DSA celebrity” after Carson’s murder, writing that “if she’s going to politicize the murder of her boyfriend, then the street goes both ways.”
Kaishian argued that such statements show Paladino’s “intent to continue to engage in this dangerous behavior and constitute an ongoing threat to Ms. Morales’ safety.”
Morales said Wednesday she felt “destabilized” and “re-traumatized” by Paladino’s initial comments. She said she had had no direct interaction with Paladino before the council member posted the now-deleted accusations around Carson’s murder.
“Immediately I received replies … jeering at me, or further defaming, harassing me,” Morales said. “People telling me that they believed her instead of me, even after she took down the initial post.”
Inflaming ‘a violent political climate’
Morales, who said she fears harassment and threats from Paladino’s followers, described the council member’s rhetoric as inflaming “a violent and divided political climate.”
“I feel unsafe … what I fear is people like Council Member Paladino and the followers that she emboldens in a violent and divided political climate that she continues to stoke,” Morales said. “Her tweets create an environment where harassment and even violence towards me is portrayed as not just justified but righteous.”
The copy of the cease and desist letter was also sent to Council Speaker Adrienne Adams and Council Standards and Ethics Committee Chair Sandra Ung.
Kaishian confirmed she had not heard from Paladino or her office as of Wednesday evening but said the matter had been referred to the City Council’s general counsel.
“We are considering taking further legal action, whether or not there is a response,” Kaishian said, adding they believe Paladino’s actions violated constitutional protections.
Morales said she is “cautiously hopeful” the City Council will hold Paladino accountable.
A spokesperson for Adams said the Speaker finds Paladino’s social media comments, including her recent remarks, “disgusting and offensive.”
“The Speaker has referred the matter to the Committee on Standards and Ethics, which has jurisdiction over Council member discipline,” Speaker Adams’ spokesperson Rendy Desamours said. “Consistent with democratic principles, the Speaker of the City Council cannot unilaterally take action to discipline members who were democratically elected by voters.”
Council Member Sandra Ung, who chairs the Ethics Committee, said she could not comment on any possible proceedings due to confidentiality rules.
