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ProPublica releases thousands of NYPD disciplinary records shielded from public view

26 July 2020
Dan Ackermann

ProPublica on Sunday released a searchable database consisting of thousands of New York Police Department disciplinary records that state law had shielded from public view for decades.

The state of play: State lawmakers voted to repeal the statute in the wake of the police killing of George Floyd, but a federal judge issued a temporary restraining order blocking the release of the records after unions for police officers, firefighters and corrections officers sued the city. ProPublica is not a party to the lawsuit and chose to move forward with releasing the records.

What they're saying: "We are making this information public, and, with it, providing an unprecedented picture of civilians' complaints of abuse by NYPD officers as well as the limits of the current system that is supposed to hold officers accountable," wrote ProPublica's deputy managing editor Eric Umansky.

  • "We understand the arguments against releasing this data. But we believe the public good it could do outweighs the potential harm,” added editor in chief Stephen Engelberg.
  • "The database gives the people of New York City a glimpse at how allegations involving police misconduct have been handled, and allows journalists and ordinary citizens alike to look more deeply at the records of particular officers.”

The big picture: The database names active-duty officers who have had at least one allegation against them substantiated by New York’s Civilian Complaint Review Board. That's about 4,000 officers out of 36,000.

  • 303 active-duty officers have had at least five allegations that have been substantiated, according to the database. 34 have had at least 40 allegations substantiated.
  • The data describes almost 5,000 allegations of “physical force,” nearly 2,000 of “frisk” and more than 600 of “gun pointed," ProPublica points out.

The other side: "This is not a challenge to the public right to know. This is not about transparency. We are defending privacy, integrity and the unsullied reputations of thousands of hard-working public safety employees," said union spokesman Hank Sheinkopf.

Go deeper: Explore the database

Transcripts show George Floyd told police "I can't breathe" over 20 times

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Newly released transcripts of bodycam footage from the Minneapolis Police Department show that George Floyd told officers he could not breathe more than 20 times in the moments leading up to his death.

Why it matters: Floyd's killing sparked a national wave of Black Lives Matter protests and an ongoing reckoning over systemic racism in the United States. The transcripts "offer one the most thorough and dramatic accounts" before Floyd's death, The New York Times writes.

The state of play: The transcripts were released as former officer Thomas Lane seeks to have the charges that he aided in Floyd's death thrown out in court, per the Times. He is one of four officers who have been charged.

  • The filings also include a 60-page transcript of an interview with Lane. He said he "felt maybe that something was going on" when asked if he believed that Floyd was having a medical emergency at the time.

What the transcripts say:

  • Floyd told the officers he was claustrophobic as they tried to get him into the squad car.
  • The transcripts also show Floyd saying, "Momma, I love you. Tell my kids I love them. I'm dead."
  • Former officer Derek Chauvin, who had his knee on Floyd's neck for over eight minutes, told Floyd, "Then stop talking, stop yelling, it takes a heck of a lot of oxygen to talk."

Read the transcripts via DocumentCloud.