Court dismisses eight-year defamation lawsuit against Assemblyman Jeffrey Dinowitz

Assemblyman Jeffrey Dinowitz said he was relieved to see the years-long legal battle over his 2015 comments at P.S. 24 end with a unanimous decision by the state Supreme Court.

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The state Supreme Court Appellate Division’s Aug. 23 decision to dismiss the defamation lawsuit against Assemblyman Jeffrey Dinowitz brings an end to an eight-year legal battle. 

The lawsuit was initiated by former P.S. 24 assistant principal Manuele Verdi, who accused Dinowitz of making defamatory comments regarding the closure of the school’s annex — a separate facility leased out for additional classroom space. The comments in question were made from October 2015 through May 2016.

At the time, P.S. 24 was dealing with severe overcrowding, as the school’s main building, constructed in the 1950s, was not designed to accommodate the more than 1,000 students it had grown to house in 2016. The annex, located in the Whitehall, a nearby luxury apartment building, provided five extra classrooms until its lease expired in 2015. The students in the annex were then moved back into the main building, worsening the overcrowding.

Dinowitz, whose two children attended P.S. 24, was actively involved in discussions about the annex’s closure. According to court records, Dinowitz made statements at a parent association meeting that placed the blame for the situation on Verdi and the former school principal, Donna Connelly, saying the two were “derelict in their duties” and the loss of the lease was “their responsibility.”

However, the court ultimately found that Verdi failed to prove Dinowitz acted with malice, ruling his comments were lawful opinions. 

Not long after the parent association meeting, Connelly retired, telling The Press she was bullied into quitting. Verdi retired a year later, telling The Press in 2023 his departure was due to the emotional toll of the “ridicule and public contempt” he faced.

In April 2016, Verdi launched an investigation into what he claimed was a Dinowitz staff member’s improper access to P.S. 24 registration information. Two years later, after the interim principal had been removed, and the district superintendent had resigned, Verdi settled for $230,000 from the city against the education department for alleged retaliation in response to his whistleblowing. 

Dinowitz expressed relief at the defamation lawsuit’s dismissal, saying he was confident he would prevail throughout the legal process. He said he did not think the prolonged legal battle has damaged his reputation or relationship with the community.

“I’m not looking to vilify anybody at this point,” Dinowitz said, “it just feels good to have been totally vindicated.”

That said, Dinowitz said the case may have been politically motivated. He pointed out Verdi’s attorney, Ezra Glaser, ran against him in a 1994 special election, only to drop out and endorse another candidate who ultimately lost to Dinowitz. 

In 2016, Glaser told The Press there was no bad blood between him and Dinowitz, noting they had even collaborated on a lawsuit opposing the Department of Environmental Protection’s work at the Jerome Park reservoir. 

Dinowitz said the lawsuit did not deter him from his commitment to defending his constituents and speaking out on important issues.