New York City Department of Investigation

Action Needed to Strengthen Activities of City Marshals

The audit, whose purpose was to determine if City Marshals complied with DOI's rules and regulations, found that the Marshals kept inadequate records and, consequently, the City may be suffering a loss of revenue from the "poundage" collected by the City on each of the executions carried out by a Marshal. In addition, DOI performed periodic rather than annual audits of Marshal's, and Marshals failed to return Small Claims Court judgment executions to the Court in a timely manner, thus preventing the City Clerk from updating a list of judgment debtors. Further, a questionnaire sent to a sample of claimants who used the services of a Marshal indicated that the claimants generally did not know what Marshals' responsibilities were, who monitors their activities, or how to register a complaint about a Marshal. A-24-93