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Dasheeda Dawson, who helped people start dispensaries, was accused of trying to pressure a businesswoman into a relationship in exchange for a city contract.
March 31, 2025, 7:02 p.m. ET
An official in charge of helping people start cannabis businesses in New York City resigned abruptly last week as her agency was investigating an accusation that she tried to pressure another woman into a polyamorous relationship in exchange for a city contract.
The official, Dasheeda Dawson, who stepped down last Tuesday from a program called Cannabis NYC, denied the accusation and said in a statement that her “decision to resign is unrelated and was not made lightly.”
City officials have not named a replacement, and the mayor’s office declined to comment about her departure.
Ms. Dawson, 46, said she was informed of a complaint last July and cooperated with Equal Employment Opportunity investigators through September, but had not heard anything of it since.
The complaint was filed by Jamila Washington and Monifa Foluke, co-owners of Repot Box, an app that helps dispensaries reward consumers for recycling packaging like empty vape hardware.
In an interview on Sunday, Ms. Washington accused Ms. Dawson of blacklisting the company after she rebuffed her advances for a relationship, including using her influence to have Repot removed from conference panels and events.
