BY SAL GRECO
From the Graziano controversy and alleged time theft to questions surrounding confidential medical information, the dismantling of the K9 wellness program and now allegations of IAB retaliation, SalGreco.com’s continuing coverage of the NYPD Health & Wellness Section has taken another major turn.
For months, SalGreco.com and The Sal Greco Show have continued digging into turmoil surrounding the NYPD’s Health & Wellness apparatus, reporting on allegations involving former Executive Director Matthew Graziano, psychologist David Tzall, questions over timekeeping and outside employment, confidential employee information, internal investigations and the overall direction of a unit whose very mission is supposed to protect the physical and mental well-being of New York City police officers.
Now, another lawsuit has landed.
NYPD Lieutenant Karolina Ostrowska-Tuznik filed a 41-page federal civil-rights complaint via her attorney John Scola against the City of New York, Police Commissioner Jessica Tisch individually, and Inspector Mark Wachter individually, alleging that she was subjected to a sustained campaign of retaliation after suing the Department and later speaking publicly about the future of NYPD officer wellness programs.
The allegations have not been proven in court, and the defendants will have an opportunity to contest them.
But the complaint adds another chapter to a Health & Wellness story that SalGreco.com has been following long before this latest federal filing.
From Graziano to Another Federal Lawsuit
SalGreco.com previously covered the controversy involving former Health & Wellness Executive Director Matthew Graziano, including allegations concerning nearly 1,000 hours of time, outside telehealth work, confidential medical information and claims of retaliation surrounding his departure.
Graziano subsequently went to court himself, alleging retaliation, a hostile work environment, misuse of confidential medical information, defamation, constructive discharge and civil-rights violations.
That reporting was part of a broader examination by SalGreco.com into Health & Wellness, including allegations involving David Tzall and approximately 800 hours of alleged time theft, as well as larger questions about accountability inside a section specifically charged with caring for cops.
Now Ostrowska-Tuznik’s complaint raises a different but equally troubling question:
What happens when someone inside Health & Wellness complains about what is happening inside Health & Wellness?
Lieutenant Says Retaliation Began After She Sued Tisch
Ostrowska-Tuznik has been with the NYPD since 2012 and helped develop the Department’s officer-wellness programs. She eventually became commanding officer of the Health & Wellness Section’s K9 Wellness Outreach and Support Unit, a program created in the aftermath of an NYPD suicide crisis.
In September 2025, she filed a state lawsuit alleging that Commissioner Tisch refused to retain her in Health & Wellness following promotion while allowing male members of the Department to remain in specialized units after their promotions.
The federal complaint identifies at least 13 male members whom Ostrowska-Tuznik alleges Tisch permitted to be retained between December 2024 and August 2025.
That underlying discrimination lawsuit remains separate from the new federal action.
This time, Ostrowska-Tuznik says she was retaliated against for filing it.
Complaint: Wachter Wanted His Name Out of Lawsuit
One of the most significant portions of the complaint concerns Inspector Mark Wachter.
Ostrowska-Tuznik alleges that within days of filing her state lawsuit, Wachter called and texted her demanding that she amend the complaint and remove portions concerning him.
She further alleges Wachter accused her of attempting to destroy his career, circulated the lawsuit around the office and told colleagues that she had “betrayed” him.
Ordinarily, those would remain one side’s allegations awaiting adjudication.
But this case contains an additional development.
According to the federal complaint, on July 28, 2026, NYPD’s Office of Equal Employment Opportunity notified Ostrowska-Tuznik in writing that the Police Commissioner had determined her allegations against Wachter were “SUBSTANTIATED.”
Other allegations against Health & Wellness officials received different findings: allegations involving a captain and the section’s executive director were deemed exonerated, while an allegation involving a deputy commissioner was deemed unsubstantiated.
That distinction matters.
Two Days Later: IAB, Dog Food and a Peloton
What allegedly happened 48 hours later may become one of the most scrutinized portions of the lawsuit.
On July 30, Ostrowska-Tuznik says she was subjected to approximately three and a half hours of questioning concerning expired dog food, canine equipment and a Peloton exercise bicycle.
The complaint says she was accused of improperly removing more than $1,000 worth of Department property, including expired dog food, canine supplies and a canine grooming vacuum.
She denies wrongdoing.
She alleges that the supplies were items she was authorized to take and that similarly situated male K9 handlers routinely took such supplies without consequences.
Then investigators allegedly questioned the Peloton.
Ostrowska-Tuznik says she purchased the bicycle herself and produced an invoice establishing ownership. According to the complaint, she was even required to provide proof concerning another Peloton that had been given to her as a gift, requiring her sister-in-law to locate an old receipt.
Her union attorney allegedly characterized the interrogation as a “fishing expedition.”
The timing is extraordinary enough to form a centerpiece of her federal retaliation claim:
July 28: NYPD allegedly informs her that the allegations against Wachter were substantiated.
July 30: IAB interrogates her for roughly three and a half hours over dog food and exercise equipment.
Ostrowska-Tuznik alleges that wasn’t coincidence.
She calls it retaliation.
The New York Times Interview
The complaint also focuses heavily on Ostrowska-Tuznik’s decision to speak publicly.
She contacted The New York Times through her attorney and participated in an October 9, 2025 video interview while off duty and with counsel present.
She says she disclosed no confidential information.
The December 11 article addressed the future of the therapy-dog program, NYPD’s officer-suicide crisis and her allegations of discrimination.
Ostrowska-Tuznik was quoted saying of the wellness program:
“It’s almost like they’re trying to get rid of the whole thing.”
According to her lawsuit, IAB subsequently investigated her communications with the press, interrogated her and issued a formal Letter of Instruction that became part of her personnel record.
Her attorneys argue that speaking to a newspaper while off duty about officer suicide, government policy and her own discrimination lawsuit constituted constitutionally protected speech.
An Explosive Confidentiality Allegation Inside Health & Wellness
Perhaps the allegation most deserving of attention from rank-and-file cops involves something SalGreco.com has repeatedly questioned in its Health & Wellness coverage : confidentiality.
The lawsuit alleges that on January 30, 2026, the Health & Wellness Section’s executive director directed Ostrowska-Tuznik and a detective to report the identities and personal circumstances of members seeking peer support through a group chat that included non-clinical supervisors.
The complaint even provides an example of the type of information allegedly requested — including an officer’s command and the personal reason the officer was seeking assistance.
Ostrowska-Tuznik objected in writing.
She argued that documenting names, shield numbers, mental-health information, personal stressors and the substance of peer-support conversations could violate confidentiality protections.
According to the lawsuit, the executive director responded:
“Again. I’m not asking. This is how it will be reported out moving forward.”
The complaint further alleges that an IAB referral was invoked as a potential consequence surrounding confidentiality compliance.
That allegation should concern anyone who expects cops experiencing mental-health problems to voluntarily seek assistance.
If an officer believes his or her identity, personal crisis or reason for seeking help could travel through a supervisory group chat, how comfortable will that officer be asking for help in the first place?
That question deserves an answer.
The Wellness K9 Unit Disappears
The complaint says Ostrowska-Tuznik didn’t merely work in the K9 program.
She helped build it.
Yet she alleges that replacement therapy dogs and handlers weren’t approved, requests went unanswered, meetings occurred without her and her unit eventually stopped receiving some of the very crisis notifications it existed to respond to.
Detective Theresa Mahon, another therapy-dog handler, allegedly believed she was being targeted because of her association with Ostrowska-Tuznik. According to the complaint, Mahon suffered a panic attack after a meeting with higher-ranking supervisors and ultimately retired in March 2026, citing what she described as a toxic environment and ongoing retaliation.
By spring 2026, according to the lawsuit, the K9 Wellness Outreach and Support Unit essentially no longer functioned.
Tisch Personally Named
This isn’t simply another lawsuit naming the NYPD Commissioner in her official capacity.
Ostrowska-Tuznik is suing Jessica Tisch individually and seeking punitive damages against her.
The complaint alleges Tisch personally made the decision not to retain Ostrowska-Tuznik in Health & Wellness, declined to approve replacement canines and handlers, knew about the lawsuit and public statements and knew that the complaint involving Wachter had been substantiated.
Nevertheless, Ostrowska-Tuznik alleges the retaliation continued.
The City is separately accused of municipal liability, with the complaint alleging that IAB’s investigative and disciplinary machinery was used to punish protected speech and petitioning. Those remain allegations the City can challenge in court.
SalGreco.com Has Been Following the Health & Wellness Trail
This latest lawsuit should not be viewed in isolation.
SalGreco.com has continued reporting on NYPD Health & Wellness while story after story has raised questions about what exactly has been occurring behind the doors of a section supposedly dedicated to helping cops.
First came allegations surrounding management.
Then came allegations involving Graziano and nearly 1,000 hours of alleged time theft, outside employment and confidential medical information.
Then Graziano himself sued.
There were separate allegations involving Tzall and approximately 800 hours.
Now a lieutenant who helped build one of the Department’s most visible officer-wellness programs is in federal court alleging First Amendment retaliation, the weaponization of Internal Affairs, punishment for speaking to the press, interference with the K9 wellness program and deeply troubling practices involving the confidentiality of cops seeking help.
These are separate allegations involving different people and circumstances, and they should not be conflated.
But taken together, they raise an unavoidable question:
What exactly has been going on inside NYPD Health & Wellness?
Ostrowska-Tuznik’s federal complaint contains three causes of action: First Amendment retaliation for protected speech, First Amendment retaliation for exercising the right to petition the government, and municipal liability against the City of New York.
She wants the Letter of Instruction and adverse IAB findings expunged, an injunction prohibiting further retaliation, compensatory damages for lost overtime and other losses, damages for emotional and reputational harm, and punitive damages against Tisch and Wachter personally.
The defendants have not yet had their day in court, and allegations should be treated as allegations unless established by evidence or judicial findings.
But the paper trail surrounding Health & Wellness continues to grow.
SalGreco.com has been following that trail.
And now it leads straight into federal court.