Bill de Blasio ordered to pay $475,000 for misusing police detail during failed presidential run

New York City's Conflicts of Interest Board on Thursday ordered former Mayor Bill de Blasio to pay nearly $475,000 for misuse of his New York Police Department security detail during his failed 2020 Democratic presidential campaign. 

De Blasio was fined $5,000 for each of the 31 times he used city resources for non-city purposes by traveling with his NYPD security detail on out-of-state campaign trips from May 2019 through September 2019, the board's report states. The $155,000 fine is the largest ever amount issued by the board, according to Patch.

The board also ordered him to pay the city $319,794.20 in travel costs for his security detail during those 31 trips.

"Although there is a City purpose in the City paying for an NYPD security detail for the City’s Mayor ... there is no City purpose in paying for the extra expenses incurred by that NYPD security detail to travel at a distance from the City to accompany the Mayor or his family on trips for his campaign for President of the United States," the board stated in its report. The board also said it advised de Blasio "to this effect prior to his campaign" but he "disregarded" the advice.

De Blasio's attorney Andrew Celli, Jr. said he already filed to appeal the board's decision. He argued that the board "violated the Constitution" in its ruling and seeks to have elective officials pay for security costs.

Madeleine Hubbard is an international correspondent for Just the News. Follow her on Twitter or Instagram.