New York State Supreme Court Justice Emily Jane Goodman has ruled that the New York City Police Department must surrender edited records of police shootings involving civilians to the New York Civil Liberties Union (NYCLU). Goodman ordered the NYPD to turn over the records dating back to 1997—minus info identifying the names of the police, victims and witnesses. Given the length of time the Big Apple po-po have spent defending these records from the public (two years) and their vehemence in doing so, the cops will probably appeal. Why?
“Lawyers for the NYPD had put forward a laundry list of reasons why they believed the reports should be completely withheld,” nypost.com reports. “Including arguing that it would interfere with investigations, discourage witnesses from cooperating, and because their release could be an ‘unwarranted invasion of privacy’ for those involved.”
The real reason: the police don’t want taxpayers second-guessing officer-involved shootings. Fears that exposing the info could lead to lawsuits against the city. And, more importantly, career busting. Even with the person info redacted.
The NYCLU has promised TTAG a look-see as and when the cops surrender the info. The reports should reveal a wealth of information about personal defense: from the average distance between combatants, to the number of shots fired, to anything and everything that TTAG’s Armed Intelligentsia would like to query. If you’re interested in helping us crunch the stats, drop a line to guntruth@me.com.