Schenectady councilmen seek Federal Police oversight
- OFR -
By MIKE GOODWIN
Gazette Reporter
SCHENECTADY - The U.S. Justice Department should take over operation of
the Police
Department, two city councilmen said Tuesday, criticizing embattled
Chief Gregory T. Kaczmarek's
job performance and declaring the department was "not getting better by
itself."
The Police Department has been the focus of a corruption investigation
by the federal government
for nearly two years, Councilmen Joseph Allen and David Bouck said at a
City Hall news
conference, but accusations of misconduct and mismanagement on the force
continue to come to
light.
In recent days, a former internal affairs officer testified in a civil
deposition that more than 100
misconduct investigations were scuttled by police brass during the
mid-1990s.
Kaczmarek also has been criticized for making racy remarks on a local
radio show recently.
"It is apparent that the situation surrounding our Police Department is
not getting better by itself,"
Bouck said.
He promised he and Allen "will file necessary paperwork with the Civil
Liberties Union and ask the
federal government to take over operations of our department until the
investigations have ceased."
"We need to begin the healing process with the public," Bouck said, "and
it is just not happen- ing
under the leadership of Greg Kaczmarek."
Louise G. Roback, director of the New York Civil Liberty Union's Capital
Region Chapter, said
her office will take a "long hard look" at the possibility of filing a
lawsuit to force federal monitoring
of the city police.
"If we determine that litigation is appropriate, then we wouldn't
hesitate to do that," she said.
The Justice Department has sought federal monitoring of a number of
police departments around the
country, including those in Los Angeles, Pittsburgh, Columbus, Ohio, and
the state of New Jersey.
Those jurisdictions, with the exception of Columbus, signed consent
decrees with the federal
government that enabled the assignment of an auditor to oversee the
"patterns or practices" of a
police department. Columbus officials have refused to sign a consent
decree and the Justice
Department has filed a lawsuit around the country, including those in
Los Angeles, Pittsburgh,
Columbus, Ohio, and the state of New Jersey. Those jurisdictions, with
the exception of Columbus,
signed consent decrees with the federal government that enabled the
assignment of an auditor to
oversee the "patterns or practices" of a police department. Columbus
officials have refused to sign a
consent decree and the Justice Department has filed a lawsuit to force
federal oversight of that
department.
Officials expect that once the criminal investigation is completed in
Schenectady, the U.S. attorney's
office will forward evidence of possible brutality and civil rights
violations to the Justice Department
in Washington. Attorneys in the Civil Rights Division then would review
the files and decide whether
to pursue federal monitoring.
Ralph Boyd Jr., a former federal prosecutor who grew up in Niskayuna,
has been nominated by
President Bush to head the Civil Rights Division.
No comment
Federal prosecutors have declined to discuss the likelihood they'll
eventually refer the Schenectady
case to the Civil Rights Division.
"I can't comment because we're in the midst of an ongoing
investigation," said Assistant U.S.
Attorney John Katko, the prosecutor handling the criminal investigation
of the Police Department.
Kaczmarek said he would welcome federal monitoring.
He said it would allow the city to make changes - including regular
review of each officer's job
performance - that would improve police professionalism. The current
collective bargaining process
with the Police Benevolent Association hamstrings that effort, Kaczmarek
said.
"Had there been any dialogue with me, they would have known from me that
for the past year and a
half I have been discussing with city attorneys . . . that we might want
to seek a consent decree," the
chief said.
"It would be a useful administrative tool because the collective
bargaining process, historically, failed
to make positive inroads for management."
But Police Benevolent Association President Anthony Brown said changes
can be made through the
give-and-take of contract negotiations.
"I think the chief is a master of deflecting issues and placing blame
conveniently on the PBA," Brown
said. "He should leave the politics to the politicians, and he should
lead our department in a direction
where all the officers will follow."
Bouck and Allen's call for federal oversight was news to fellow members
of the all-Democrat City
Council.
"I think they're entitled to their opinion," Council President Denise
Brucker said. "They didn't talk to
me about it. I have no idea what they talked about, and I really can't
comment on it."
Mayor Albert P. Jurczynski, a political ally and friend of the chief,
questioned why the councilmen
would ask for federal oversight without first seeking council comment.
He also questioned why they
didn't appeal directly to the U.S. attorney's office. "Why go through
the ACLU?" he asked.
Two-year probe
The federal government has been investigating the Police Department for
nearly two years. So far,
two police officers, Michael Siler and Richard Barnett, have faced
charges in connection with the
probe.
The federal investigation appears focused on allegations of corruption,
Allen said. Prosecutors have
alleged that Siler and Barnett used crack cocaine to reward informants.
Allen said county District Attorney Robert M. Carney should investigate
the myriad of complaints of
police brutality and abuse that, so far, have not led to charges at the
federal level.
Carney said it would be "inappropriate for me" to conduct a parallel
investigation of the police
during the federal probe.
"I also reserve the right to independently review issues of corruption,
brutality or mismanagement
following completion of the federal investigation and decision on
possible federal oversight," Carney
said in a statement. "Until such time, it would be counterproductive to
intervene."
Bouck and Allen have been frequent critics of Kaczmarek's leadership.
Both have requested his
resignation in the past.
They said their decision to request federal intervention was based
primarily on recent revelations by
a former internal affairs officer that in the mid-1990s police leaders
scuttled officer-misconduct
investigations. Kaczmarek was the assistant chief in charge of the road
patrol for part of the time in
question.
Now-retired Lt. Daniel Johnson made the allegations in a civil
deposition for a lawsuit filed against
the Police Department, according to sources.
Kevin Luibrand, the attorney who brought the lawsuit, agreed there is a
need for federal oversight.
He said it's become necessary because the City Council and the mayor's
office have failed to
provide their own supervision.
"That's what these people should have been doing," Luibrand said.
"They can blame each other all they want, but that's where the blame
lies."
Return to Index
--
- Outlaw Frog Raper -
Schenectady Copwatch
(518) 356-4238