Police Misconduct

Police misconduct is a horrifying thing to think about. Whether it's an officer harassing someone or brutalizing someone they're arresting for no good reason, the reality is that they aren't doing their job and are violating the law. One thing that has helped in these cases is the use of police body cameras. One problem, though, is how slowly the New York Police Department, or NYPD, has been turning over the tapes. Since the body camera program began, the Civilian Complaint Review Board has asked for body camera footage over 4,000 times. This footage could help substantiate claims made about...

Police misconduct is a serious problem. When the police do something that isn't appropriate, it can affect an entire case. Take, for example, this recent case out of New York in which a man whose DNA was allegedly discovered on a dead female will no longer face murder charges. There's good reason for the man not having to face charges and for having the case dismissed, and that reason is police misconduct. According to the story, the police wrongfully obtained the man's DNA, and a judge would not allow an oder to obtain a second sample. This was despite showing that the DNA from the man's...

There is never a reason for a police officer to brutalize an individual. There's never a reason for them to violate another person's rights. At the end of the day, police officers are supposed to protect the peace and enforce the laws, but their main goal should be to protect the people they serve. Incidents involving police misconduct can be terrifying. Some common situations where misconduct could occur include: During traffic stops While being arrested During actions that are a result of racial profiling During detainment in a jail, detention facility or prison If you're victimized in any...

If you have to call the police, you hope that they'll come to help you. You want them to take your situation seriously and to give you the support that you deserve under the law. You deserve protection and help, not to be put in a more dangerous situation. Unfortunately, not every police officer follows the rule of law. Take for example this horrific case in which a woman has claimed that a police officer brutally raped her in her home, only to be told that her claims don't meet the legal threshold for rape by a police officer. Her story is simple. She called 911 to report her missing teen...

When the police do something wrong, the public deserves to know and to hold the agencies responsible for those actions. Unfortunately, the reality is that police misconduct is often hidden, and records of incidents are hidden away. Take, for example, this case that reached the national news. A woman saw that someone had been shot by the police, and she thought it may be her son. Though she went to the police to ask who had been taken to the hospital and asked the hospital itself, she couldn't get any information because of it being an officer-involved shooting. The woman did not find out it...

The term police misconduct includes acts that are unethical or illegal as well as acts that violate an individual's rights. As a victim of police misconduct, it is your right to pursue compensation and to fight in court against those who try to take away your rights. There is a problem in many criminal cases, though, in that the government has to prove that misconduct occurred beyond a reasonable doubt. The government has to prove that: The defendant acted willfully in taking away or attempting to take away your rights The defendant deprived you of your rights as protected by the laws of the...

If there is something that seems like it shouldn't happen, it's the shielding of records that should be available to the public. In New York, the top court determined that it would continue to shield the police misconduct records from the public. New York's Civil Rights Law allows personnel files of police officers to be sealed. The files belonging to firefighters and corrections officers may be sealed as well. However, there is a problem since sealing those records could also seal away a history of misconduct. What does that mean for citizens? It means they don't know if an officer has been...

New York's finest are there to serve and protect the people of America's largest city. But the excessive force displayed by individuals on the police force can darken its reputation as well as cause harm to innocent people, even if the image of the beat cop has improved over the last few decades. The city paid out a staggering $384 million to settle police misconduct claims, ranging from inappropriate searches to physical violence. Payouts went to roughly half of the 11,400 claimants since 2013. Nearly half of the eye-watering total went to settle 37 cases for more than $1 million each. Most...

For New Yorkers like you, living in heavily policed communities, traumatic experiences are a daily occurrence. Most everyone you know has been victimized by the police, regardless of age or gender, or any actual wrongdoing. You may have seen people approached by the police for jaywalking and harassed until the situation escalates into an arrest. You may have seen women sexually harassed or assaulted by officers as they were going about their day. You may have seen good people stopped and frisked for no reason at all, despite the supposed end to that policy. You may have seen officers...