Corruption in the NYPD - Report Example

The New York Police Department 8th December, 2008 Corruption in the NYPD Introduction The New York Police Department (NYPD) has a broad assortment of specialized services that it offers to the city residents. They include tactical operations, bomb disposal, air support, drugs and narcotics, anti-gang and anti-terrorism and intelligence services. It was established in 1845 and is headed by the New York City Police Commissioner, who is appointed by the mayor. The NYPD has faced several charges of corruption since its inception. Corruption charges include the collection of bribes, drug charges, denial of promotion and specialized training to staff and the compromising of cases. The number of NYPD police officers involved in corruption, using drugs, pilfering property, extorting sex from women among other things- increased last year as reported by a confidential report (Weiss, 2007). The Knapp Commission of 1970 discovered that organized crime was the leading basis of corruption among the police. Another was legal business that sought to ensure smooth passage through the complex city legal system and policy. From this cropped the prevalent form of corruption that concerned accepting bribes. This was the root of more bizarre forms of corruption. The police department has gone through investigations and reforms several times in its existence. Police corruption scandals have warranted the establishment of a commission of inquiry almost every 20 years in the history of the NYPD. Newham (2003) says that after every inquiry, reforms were implemented. Each time, they were thought to have the ability to solve the problem of corruption completely. The problem however seemed to be worse than had been anticipated. The Internal Affairs Bureau is now endowed with the responsibility of investigating the NYPD. Corruption in the NYPD Members of higher rank in the NYPD as well as the press have recently subjected the NYPD Crime Scene Unit to scrutiny. Reasons for the inspection are based on claims that the department has processed several sophisticated cases. It has also been rumored that the present Commanding Officer of the unit and the Executive Officer, Deputy Inspector Gary Gomula and Michael Kletzel respectively are mismanaging the detectives in the process of important investigations. This has consequently resulted in mishandling or complete loss of evidence (Gendar, 2008). The NY Daily News on 1st February 2008 reported that Gary and Kletzel drew the Police Commissioner’s attention when evidence on shot police officers went missing during an investigation. The article also raised concern over lax discipline in the police unit. A former investigator in the department was quoted as declaring that the management is ignorant of the state of affairs and people are being harassed for every small crime (Newham, 2003). The following day, the same paper carried an article claiming the habitual compromise of cases. The paper reported the overlooking of ballistic evidence in investigations on the shooting of Sean Bell, a victim of police shooting that took place outside a Queen’s strip club. The man was not armed and was killed in a hail of 50 police bullets. The evidence was overlooked in a rush to prepare diagrams and reports for a conference of the press later in the day (Gendar, 2008). Another example cites the case of Parolee Cedrick Rooks. The man was caught red-handed spraying bullets outside some houses by police but only one round of ammunition was recovered. He was released after being charged with six counts of murder on the precept that there was not enough evidence. A source said that there was not enough investigation and even the basics were not done. Gomula was on the blame for pulling the original team out of the investigations and dispatching another team to continue with the investigations. However, other sources claimed that such shortcuts were taken when the crime scene unit was under pressure to find answers as soon as possible in high-profile cases (Gendar, 2008). The compromise of cases, as Gendar (2008) puts it, is the result of inadequate manpower and demand for shortcuts by Gomula and other top staff. Former investigators in the unit and police sources have revealed information on what goes on in the crime scene unit. Comments from the public revealed that they could only let out these secrets after leaving service since there would be consequences if Gomula got any hint of betrayal from any of the staff (Gendar, 2008). Besides the compromise of high-profile cases, the NYPD has also faced charges of involvement in drug scandals (Weiss, 2008). One of the responsibilities of the NYPD is to check drug use in the country. Involvement in the same is therefore a breach of the law and a compromise on the duties of the force. Still, NYPD has been charged with corruption involving this at one time or the other. An example of this is the case involving of retired police officer, Kenneth Eurell. The officer and six other police officers of the city of New York were linked to an undercover drug operation that had been going on for five months. As reported by “Behind the blue wall”, a phone tap revealed this operation. Eurell admitted involvement and went on to baffle the investigators when he told them that he and the others involved were protecting and helping traffickers of the narcotics at weekly payoffs that amounted to up to ten thousand dollars (“Behind the blue wall”). There is also the case of a police officer in the NYPD who hang out with drug dealers and who actually made bets in sports with the money he got from his dealings in marijuana. The Post has obtained revelations that show that the number of police officers using drugs last year increased by 138%. One particular cop is said to use phencyclidine (PCP) while another injects steroids into his bottom (Weiss, 2008). People have found themselves trapped by the same force that is supposed to protect them. Civilians have got into trouble with the NYPD over refusal to be conspirators in crime. It is a question of law enforcement versus law breaking. Dorismond is one of the innocent victims that have suffered the wrath of law-breaking law-enforcers. The irony of it! Dorismond is said to have been hailing a cab when a narcotics team confronted him. They tried to lure him into selling marijuana. He did not have any and had no idea he was dealing with the police. He ended up in the morgue (Weiss, 2008). Newham (2003) discovered that when the IAB was established, the most reported cases of corruption involved the stealing and selling of drugs besides association with the dealers. Drug-screening tests were introduced as a requirement for all new recruits into the NYPD and those who were promoted or transferred. Newham commends this measure saying that it has reduced the allegations related to drugs against the officers in NYPD. Apart from these corruption crimes, officers have been found to involve themselves in the crime of accident insurance fraud. The involvement is often indirect and involves people outside the police force. These parties include the attorneys, doctors and civilians. While they stage non-existent accidents, the police are integrated by being to fill in the accident reports. The whole setup enables the parties to receive insurance money for accidents that did not occur (Newham, 2003). It would seem a viable assumption that most forms of corruption have their root in greed for money. Last year, 34% of the cases of corruption reported were those of stealing property. Weiss (2008) cites the case of Mammianne Zadja, an NYPD cop who tried to steal from her own family. She attempted to alter her father’s will to exclude her brother. She initially got fake medical papers alleging that her father suffered from Alzheimer’s. She got an impersonator to represent her father at the bank but was caught when an offer for a bank loan became suspicious (Weiss, 2008). Officer Eduardo Saillant stole from the dead. He took credit cards belonging to people who had died and used them to buy fuel for his car and to buy goods from hardware stores. He resigned from the NYPD. These are some of the cases reported by Weiss in the New York Post in 2008. NYPD does not lack its share of honest fellows though. Frank Serpico, a former New York City police officer, became a recognized symbol of honesty. He is quoted as saying that good role models are needed and this has so begin at the very top. He is said to have turned down bribes on several occasions and even reported corrupt officers. His colleagues had labeled him ‘a rat’. (Tyre and Reuters 1997). Conclusion According to reports, the NYPD is to some extent responsible for the corruption charges against its people for failing to monitor or investigate adequately those officers that face charges. This problem runs right from up all the way down the ranks. Out of 22 police officers who faked reports of the department for example, only 2 were sacked while investigations showed that 3 more should deserved the same treatment. The punishment for transgression using firearms was also found to be too lenient (Moore, 2008). There were also found to be other reasons why officers became corrupt. IAB conducted some research, which incorporated interviews. The reasons that emerged were that the corrupt officers were led by greed. Money is said to be the root of many evils. Some people will do anything to acquire it even it means it means compromising their duties and putting greater things at risk. The cops would therefore desire to have more than what is their legal pay and hence their involvement in acts of corruption. For others, the reason was that the opportunity presented itself. For this category, one would wonder whether a desire for adventure as the reason suggests would be enough to jeopardize the law. Still, others said that they did not think that the same arm of the law that thy served would catch up with them. The only factor that was found to be significant was the fact that the corrupt officers possibly lacked formal education (Newham, 2003). The law ought to be stricter on the police. If law-enforcers are the examples of law-breakers to be read about in the media and heard in every day conversations, then trying to enforce the law would be a vain venture and an unfair one at that. References: Gendar, Alison. High-profile cases are jeopardized by NYPD unit’s lapses. (2008, February 3). Daily News Police Bureau. Retrieved 8 December 2008. Moore, Tina. Corruption commission gives NYPD high marks; rips lax penalties for cops. (2008, February 28). Daily News Police Bureau. Retrieved 9 December 2008. Newham, Gareth. (2003). Preventing police corruption: Lessons from the New York Police Department. Centre for the Study of Violence and Reconciliation. Retrieved 8 December 2008. Weiss, Murray. NYPD Corruption cases surged in 2006. (2008, July 8). New York Post. Retrieved 8 December 2008. Behind the blue wall. (2008 July). Retrieved 8 December 2008, from Tyre, Peg and Reuters. Serpico resurrects his decades-old criticism of NYPD. CNN (1997, September 23). 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