Law Enforcement Disciplinary Records
Law enforcement disciplinary records can provide defenders with vital impeachment information. While a law specifically protecting those records from disclosure (Civil Rights Law 50-a) was repealed in 2020, obtaining the records has continued to be difficult. NYSDA, which supported the long-needed reform (see the June 15, 2020, edition of News Picks from NYSDA Staff), continues to provide information of securing such records. When questions about disciplinary records arise in the context of discovery, our Discovery and Forensic Unit may be of assistance; (contact them at discoveryforensicsupportunit@nysda.org).
If the records are sought using the Freedom of Information Law (see our Law Enforcement FOIL page), delay may be encountered due to a 2024 law. It added subdivision 6 to Public Officers Law 87, requiring all agencies subject to FOIL to “develop a policy regarding providing a notification to public employees” when the agency is responding to a request for such employees’ disciplinary records. See News Picks for Sept. 17, 2024.
Police Personnel Databases
New York State
- New York Police Disciplinary Records: USA Today Network news organizations in New York State have created a searchable database of police disciplinary records for police departments around the state.
"Police disciplinary records previously protected under Section 50a of the state Civil Rights Law are now subject to Freedom of Information requests after legislation was passed in June 2020. Some agencies in the state have not fulfilled requests for access to those records and may not return a result in search. We continue to update this database as those records are released.
This database uses records acquired under New York's Freedom of Information laws along with those collated from records available on some New York police department websites. Our analysis has shown that some publicly available records are incomplete and omit reference to serious reported incidents."
State Police Disciplinary Records, Troop A: WKBW 7 News (Buffalo). "List of disciplinary action received by active members of New York State Police Troop A as a result of their conduct. 7 News has not included conduct that resulted in only a written reprimand." Troop A covers the following counties: Allegany, Cattaraugus, Chautauqua, Erie, Genesee, Niagara, Orleans, Wyoming.
NYPD (NYC)
- NYPD Member of Service Histories: "This database allows users to view the record of NYPD misconduct allegations. Click a row to see the officer's allegation history, including the CCRB's disposition, the NYPD's disposition, and the penalty ultimately imposed (if applicable)."
- 50-a.org: "Information here is compiled from now public CCRB records and FOIL requests, provided by NYCLU, ProPublica as well as NYC DA Adverse Credibility lists, provided by Gothamist/WNYC and discipline summaries from 2011-2015, provided by BuzzFeed."
- ProPublica: "The NYPD Files: After New York state repealed a law that kept police disciplinary records secret, ProPublica sought records from the civilian board that investigates complaints by the public about New York City police officers. The board provided us with the closed cases of every active-duty police officer who had at least one substantiated allegation against them. The records span decades, from September 1985 to January 2020. We have created a database of complaints that can be searched by name or browsed by precinct or nature of the allegations."
- Law Enforcement Lookup (The Legal Aid Society): "Law Enforcement Lookup (LELU) provides one-stop access to law enforcement misconduct data in New York City. LELU is an extension of the Legal Aid Society’s Cop Accountability Project (CAP), which empowers organizations and communities across New York City to hold police officers accountable for civil rights violations."
- NYCLU: NYPD Misconduct Complaint Database: "The NYPD Misconduct Complaint Database is a repository of complaints made by the public on record at the Civilian Complaint Review Board (CCRB). These complaints span two distinct periods: the time since the CCRB started operating as an independent city agency outside the NYPD in 1994 and the prior period when the CCRB operated within the NYPD. The database includes 323,911 unique complaint records involving 81,550 active or former NYPD officers. The database does not include pending complaints for which the CCRB has not completed an investigation as of July 2020."
Outside NYC
Nationwide
Police and Peace Officer Decertification
- NYS Division of Criminal Justice Services, Police and Peace Officer Decertification ("A police or peace officer's basic training certificate is immediately invalidated when an officer is removed for cause by their employer for incompetence or misconduct, or they have resigned or retired while a disciplinary process that could result in their removal has commenced.")
- NYS Attorney General's Law Enforcement Misconduct Investigative Office (LEMIO) ("The Law Enforcement Misconduct Investigative Office, or LEMIO, seeks to protect the safety and civil rights of New Yorkers by identifying and addressing systemic law enforcement misconduct. Created by Executive Law 75, LEMIO has statewide jurisdiction over New York’s 500+ local law enforcement agencies and a broad mandate to investigate patterns and practices of wrongdoing, examine departmental policies and procedures, make recommendations for reform, and publicly report its findings.")
Latest News
Annual Report, Law Enforcement Misconduct Investigative Office, NYS Attorney General's Office (December 29, 2024) (prior annual reports available on LEMIO website)
DOCCS agrees to release disciplinary records dating back years (Times Union October 8, 2024)
Greenburgh Police Ordered to Disclose FOILed Police Disciplinary Records, News Picks from NYSDA Staff (August 22, 2024)
NYCLU obtains, releases state police misconduct, use-of-force records, State of Politics (August 15, 2023)
State Police internal documents sex on duty, DWIs and lies, WKBW 7 News Buffalo (October 7, 2022)
New Yorkers can now look up the records of police they encounter, Gothamist (October 3, 2022)
NYCLU Sues Suffolk Police Department for Withholding Misconduct Records (September 27, 2022)
[See additional Law Enforcement Disciplinary News Articles archived HERE]
Litigation Over Records Release
Matter of New York Civil Liberties Union v Suffolk County and Suffolk County Police Department (Supreme Ct, Suffolk Co Sept. 2022) [documents available from NYCLU website here]
New York Civil Liberties Union v New York State Police, Index No. 905020/2022 [documents available from NYCLU website here]
Matter of New York Civil Liberties Union v City of Rochester Police Department [documents available from NYCLU website here]
Schenectady Police Benevolent Association, Inc. v Eidens, Index No. 2020-1411 (Supreme Ct, Schenectady Co) [documents available through e-Courts WebCivil Supreme https://iapps.courts.state.ny.us/webcivil/ecourtsMain] (12/29/2020 decision dismissing the complaint available here)
Uniformed Fire Officers Association et al v de Blasio, 1:20-cv-05441 KPF (SDNY) [documents avhttps://www1.nyc.gov/site/ccrb/policy/MOS-records.pageCo) [documents available through e-Courts WebCivil Supreme https://iapps.courts.state.ny.us/webcivil/ecourtsMain]
Defense Resources
Center For Appellate Litigation, Issues to Develop, July 2020
Other Resources
- New York State Association of Counties webinar, Understanding State Law Reforms: What Does the 50-a Repeal Mean for Your County Government? (July 15, 2020)
