Here are the 11 reports of police misconduct tracked for Friday, October 12, 2012:
- New York, New York: Two now-former and one retired officers have been sentenced to prison for their roles in a smuggling ring that transported untaxed cigarettes, slot machines, counterfeit goods, and guns. They were “a group of crime fighters who took to moonlighting as criminals,” said a Manhattan U.S. attorney. The smuggling ring started off with ticket fixing and escalated from there. ow.ly/er1a6
- Cochise County, Arizona: The sheriff died in a one-car wreck; officials say his blood-alcohol content was more than three times the states legal limit. ow.ly/eqKSI
- Miami-Dade, Florida: A federal jury found a firefighter, a police officer, and an accomplice guilty of transporting shipments of fake cocaine on behalf of a client they believed was a South Beach club manager, but was actually an undercover FBI agent. The convictions carry a minimum sentence of 15 years, and could lead to life in prison. ow.ly/eqJVi
- Moorsetown, New Jersey: An officer has been sentenced to 30 years in prison for repeatedly sexually assaulting teenage and pre-teenage girls. ow.ly/eqsI8
- Tacoma, Washington: State patrol says a motorist who sideswiped a car and then tried to outrun pursuing troopers was a fellow trooper. He is now under investigation for driving under the influence, hit and run, and attempting to elude a pursing police vehicle. ow.ly/ep5RW
- Memphis, Tennessee: An officer was arrested for using fraudulent prescriptions to obtain weight-loss drugs. He is at least the 20th officer the city to be arrested this year. ow.ly/ep3RY
- Walla Walla, Washington: An undersheriff was charged in federal court with embezzling funds from the Sheriff’s office. She allegedly stole more than $67,000 over 5 years. She “used the stolen funds to make numerous cash deposits into her personal bank account and also pay for personal online shopping purchases,” said the charging document. ow.ly/ep3CD
- Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania: A Washington, D.C. police officer was arrested after he allegedly pulled out a baton and threatened a bus driver. The arresting officers needed to use a taser to subdue him. This D.C. officer is one of more than 90 D.C. officers who have been arrested in the last three-and-a-half years. He was charged with reckless endangerment, terrorist threats, and harassment. http://ow.ly/er1xo
- Update: La Grange, Kentucky: An officer who was charged with sending sexually explicit text messages to a teenager has now also been accused of tampering with public records. http://ow.ly/er3cJ
- Indian River County, Florida: A deputy was suspended for ten days for sending inappropriate letters to inmates. http://ow.ly/er6f8
- Essex County, New Jersey: A former police officer was given two years of probation. He was sentenced for lying to law enforcement officials who were investigating a bar brawl involving two of his friends who were both known to be associated with the Hells Angels motorcycle gang. “What is the role of a police officer? As seen so many times on police cars, their role is to protect and service. As we see in this case, he did not,” said the superior court judge. http://ow.ly/er74l
