Review Board Criticized!

At issue is whither the board setup to oversee the complaints
against the New York police department is doing their job. Not
so according to a local civil rights group. Read the article and let
us know your thoughts on the issue.


A civil rights group yesterday criticized New York City’s system of investigating police misconduct, charging that a civilian agency responsible for the task had failed to pursue complaints aggressively, and that punishment was too lenient when misconduct was established.
The New York Civil Liberties Union, which has long been critical of the agency, the Civilian Complaint Review Board, said that the board dismissed more than half its cases before fully investigating them, and that only about 5 percent of the cases were ultimately substantiated.

“Our analysis concludes that the civilian oversight system has failed,” said Donna Lieberman, executive director of the civil rights group.

The report, which the civil liberties union said was based mainly on data made public by the board, says the board has failed to keep pace as the volume of civilian complaints about police misconduct, ranging from improper use of force to discourtesy, has risen by 86 percent since 2000.

Police Commissioner Raymond W. Kelly dismissed the findings yesterday, calling the analysis flawed. “They are going to bash us every chance they get,” he said of the civil rights group.

Mr. Kelly attributed the increase in citizen complaints to the city’s 311 hot line, which went into operation in 2003, providing a convenient way to express displeasure with the police.

Andrew Case, a spokesman for the board, which employs 147 investigators, said its most recent records showed that 60 percent of the civilian complaints were being dismissed before they were completely investigated — but only because those who made those complaints decided not to follow through. He said none of those cases would have been dropped if those who had complained, mainly through calls to 311, had been willing to appear and make formal statements at the board’s office in Lower Manhattan, as city rules dictate.

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