The widow of an NYPD officer who died last year has claimed in a lawsuit that the Queens cop committed suicide because his commanding officer forced him to have sex with her for a favorable work schedule. Widow Gina Schindler said that her husband officer Matthew Schindler was forced into a sexual relationship with his supervisor, Sgt. Christine Hirtzel, that left him depressed and desperate. But Hirtzel had a very different account of the affair: she claims it was a consensual sexual relationship, and she was the one who tried to end it with Schindler on the day he committed suicide.
Hirtzel, who is married with two kids, told Internal Affairs investigators that she attempted to break up with Schindler on February 13th, 2012—but she claims he grew distraught at the precinct station house and said he couldn't live without her. "If I can't have you, then I'm going to kill myself," Schindler allegedly told her.
But according to the lawsuit, Schindler was the one trying to break off the affair, telling her it was “repugnant and causing him psychic injury and suffering.” The lawsuit reads: “Schindler was made to understand that he would suffer tangible detriment in his job, job assignments, working conditions and future prospects if he did not submit to the sexual advances." He allegedly said he would kill himself over the "guilt" if the affair didn't stop.
After the confrontation, Hirtzel told a precinct captain about the sexual relationship and Schindler's threats. That unnamed captain then tried “to rectify the hostile work environment and persuade him against suicide” by calling him. Schindler, who has been on the force since 1997, shot himself in his car about 4:30 p.m. that day after pulling over to the side of the Long Island Expressway.
Hirtzel, who was put on desk duty “to guard against emotional distress” after his death, was cleared of any impropriety by investigators. Schindler's widow is suing the city, the NYPD and Heitzel for violating her husband's civil rights.
