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Prosecutors in Brooklyn released the names of dozens of New York police officers with alleged credibility issues earlier this week, including seven who prosecutors said they will never use as the sole witness in a criminal case.
The release followed a Freedom of Information Act request from WNYC and the online news website, Gothamist, which lists 47 officers in 53 cases -- some of which are sealed -- since 2008 with “judicial adverse credibility findings," the New York Daily News reported.
The officers had their testimony either called into question or discredited, Gothamist reported. District attorneys in New York's other four boroughs keep or are developing similar lists, according to the site. Prosecutors in the Bronx redacted the names of the officers on their list.
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“Officer names, including those we are barred from releasing to the public, are regularly disclosed to defense lawyers and the courts in keeping with our legally-mandated obligations,” Brooklyn District Attorney Eric Gonzalez said Wednesday. “We have also publicly released the identities of police officers my office has deemed not credible and that we would never use as the sole witness in a case."
Gonzalez added the list is not an "indictment of the thousands of dedicated officers who work in our communities and with us in partnership every day to keep the people of Brooklyn safe."
In a statement to Fox News, an NYPD spokesperson said the department created an “adverse credibility committee” in 2016 to review cases in which officers were found to be not credible in court to determine if they should be investigated and face perjury charges.
"It is important to note that the Department does not consider every adversarial judicial finding as indicative of a credibility issue for a member of the Department," Sgt. Mary Frances O'Donnell said in a statement. "Often, these findings are the result of insufficient preparation for testimony of the officer or the judge substituting her perception of the facts for the officer’s firsthand knowledge."
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The Police Benevolent Association, which represents rank-and-file officers, blasted the list, saying Gonzalez should have fought its release.
“It is clear that Brooklyn D.A. Eric Gonzalez has abandoned his prosecutorial role," PBA president Patrick Lynch said. “He sides with the criminals, not crime victim. He knows that truthful police testimony gets thrown out every day in our courts, often based on a judge’s whims and biases."
The Daily News reported the seven officers who prosecutors deemed not reliable have made headlines in recent years for a string of alleged civil liberties violations.
Officer Richard Danese allegedly dumped a 14-year boy in a swamp without his shoes or shirt after he threw eggs at cars on Halloween 2007, according to the newspaper. He pleaded guilty to disorderly conduct and was allowed to stay on the force.
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Another officer, Greggory Gingo, arrested a Brooklyn man after another cop ran a stop sign and crashed into the man's car. A Breathalyzer showed no alcohol in the man's system. He sued the city and won a nearly $1 million settlement.
The move by Gonzalez comes as the relationship between the NYPD and minority communities continue to fracture amid high-profile police brutality cases and attacks on officers of the nation's largest police force.
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