A veteran Latino NYPD officer has filed a federal complaint accusing the department of discrimination, claiming its marijuana testing policy unfairly targets people with dark hair.
Frankie Palaguachi, who has almost 20 years of service and no disciplinary record, said he was demoted from detective to police officer after his hair sample tested positive for marijuana – a substance he denies using.
His complaint, which was filed with the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission, challenges the NYPD’s drug testing procedures as inconsistent and scientifically flawed, alleging that the policy allows officers who may use drugs to remain on duty while subjecting others to retaliation.
In the complaint, Palaguachi said other officers in similar situations were allowed to return to duty after blaming positive drug tests on secondhand exposure.
“I was reassigned to administrative duty while similarly situated officers… who also tested positive — were excused and returned to full duty without formal charges or trial,” Palaguachi said.
He also described the system as “a structural failure in the design, oversight and enforcement” of the NYPD’s disciplinary practices.
An NYPD spokesperson didn’t address questions about the fairness of its drug testing program and indicated that the department follows the proper drug testing procedure. The spokesperson said the procedure allows officers with positive drug tests to seek an independent analysis.
The NYPD’s policy, however, requires that all samples be collected by the department in order to ensure proper chain of custody.
Palaguachi’s complaint doesn’t specify who collected his samples. But he also paid for four additional independent tests – all of which returned negative results for drugs – and took a polygraph and a toenail drug test, which came back negative.
Lawyers behind the discrimination complaint alleged the NYPD’s drug testing policy is part of a long-standing system that shields favored officers and targets others for retaliation.
Eric Sanders, a former police officer and the attorney who helped bring the discrimination complaint, claimed unfair drug testing protects officers who might be using drugs.
“They’re not fair about the testing,” he said. “It’s random standards. It’s arbitrary. This affects the taxpayers because it essentially puts people out there who are not qualified.”
The NYPD selects officers for drug testing when they are suspected of drug use or through a random process determined by a database, according to the department’s patrol guide. The guide stipulates that both hair and urine samples can be collected and officers have the right to obtain an independent test of samples already collected by the NYPD’s medical division.
Officers who test positive for drug use face potential discipline and suspension.
The allegations come at a time when, under Mayor Eric Adams’ administration, the NYPD has faced multiple lawsuits and department investigations tied to allegations of cronyism – and continues to grapple with recruitment woes and repeated reports of off-duty officers driving under the influence.
The department continues to test police for marijuana despite the state legalizing weed in 2021. In 2022, the Law Department reportedly advised city agencies to cease such random testing, but the NYPD refused to follow this guidance.
Several scientific studies have questioned the fairness of hair sample testing, noting that darker hair may retain evidence of drug use longer than lighter hair. But the scientific evidence specifically regarding marijuana retention in darker hair remains inconclusive, according to some researchers.
Sanders said the case is less about Palaguachi than about the lack of transparency in the department’s drug testing protocols. He said Palaguachi’s complaint offered him a chance to confront the issue.
“I have to have the right case,” he said. “This is the first time I have a real case I can do it with.”
The Detectives’ Endowment Association, the union representing NYPD detectives, declined to comment. But the group, according to the complaint, requested clarification on the department’s policy on marijuana use.
The complaint slams the department’s drug policy as arbitrary and biased. Read More
