Post by WaTcHeR on Feb 14, 2006 11:05:47 GMT -5
When popular bodybuilder Victor Martinez was arrested in Fairview on drug-dealing charges, his lawyer made an unexpected move.
The attorney demanded the release of documents on the firing last April of William Cullen, the former chief of the narcotics task force at the Bergen County Prosecutor's Office. He also requested disciplinary information on three other detectives who were investigated for misconduct.
If any detectives were going to take the witness stand against Martinez, attorney Brian Neary argued, his client had a constitutional right to know whether anything in their personnel files could be used to challenge their credibility.
Neary's request was dismissed last month when Martinez agreed to a plea deal. But it has raised the issue of the conflict between police officers' privacy rights and defendants' rights to challenge the officers' credibility.
Not surprisingly, law enforcement agencies aren't eager to open police personnel files. Releasing such records, they say, would violate privacy laws and expose the agencies to lawsuits.
"It's not something we would release in an ordinary course of business," said Passaic County Prosecutor James Avigliano.
Even in extraordinary circumstances, such as the internal investigation of police officers, personnel files must remain off-limits, said Mitchell Sklar, executive director of the New Jersey State Association of Chiefs of Police.
"To have an honest and thorough investigation of internal matters, there has to be some level of confidentiality," Sklar said.
In Passaic County, where the Prosecutor's Office handles more than 1,600 narcotics cases a year, authorities said requests for police personnel records are extremely rare. Avigliano did not remember receiving one since he became prosecutor in 2002.
For Neary and other lawyers seeking access to police personnel files, a 1998 appellate ruling provides what may be the most potent legal ammunition for such a move.
In 1996, Kareem Harris of Newark was charged with eluding, resisting arrest and assaulting two police detectives. During his trial in state court in Newark, Harris' lawyer sought to obtain the personnel records of city police Detective Mario Simmons, who arrested Harris and was scheduled to testify against him.
Harris' lawyer maintained that Simmons had been accused of harassing and shaking down narcotics dealers, and was suspended from the force amid investigations of departmental misconduct. To prove his contention, he said, he needed access to Simmons' personnel files. Then jurors could decide whether Simmons was a credible witness.
The trial judge denied the request after reviewing Simmons' personnel records behind closed doors. Harris eventually was convicted and sentenced to an aggregate term of 17 years in prison.
An appellate court refused to uphold the conviction, however.
"Defendant's right of confrontation by fully challenging Detective Simmons' credibility should not be compromised," the panel held, ordering the release of Simmons' personnel records.
Steven Gilson, a Union attorney who represented Harris in the appeal, praised the decision.
"I think it's absolutely essential to have the opportunity to review personnel records," he said.
Courts in other states have permitted the inspection of police personnel files based on mere allegations of an officer's misconduct.
"We have far more here," the appellate judges wrote.
Not 'a fishing expedition'
Neary continues to make similar requests in dozens of drug cases predating Cullen's firing. He said there is far more than mere allegations.
"This is not a general fishing expedition for any and all investigators," he said. "These are detectives against whom specific action was taken."
Cullen did not return phone calls seeking comment.
Bergen County Prosecutor John Molinelli has remained tight-lipped on the reasons for Cullen's firing, the identity of the other detectives and what disciplinary measures were taken against them. He said state and federal laws require him to keep personnel records confidential.
"I have to respect every person who works for me," he said.
Molinelli said he does not object to a private review of Cullen's personnel records by the judge and lawyers for both sides. But he said it's doubtful the records would be relevant in any narcotics case.
"To my knowledge, [Cullen] did not go out making arrests in any cases," he said. "I am not really sure why his personnel matter is relevant."
As for the other detectives, he said the measures taken against them were ordinary.
"I discipline staff members all the time," he said. "It's a fact of human nature that certain staff members will be disciplined."
Personnel for the 26-member drug task force include detectives from the Prosecutor's Office, the county Sheriff's Department, the DEA and local police departments. Defendants arrested by the task force and local police departments -- about 329 in 2004 and 251 in 2005 -- are brought to state court in Hackensack by three assistant prosecutors.
Molinelli said defense lawyers occasionally seek access to police personnel records, "but I don't recall being compelled to produce the personnel records of any police officer."
Lawrence Lustberg, a Newark defense attorney, said he often makes such requests -- and at times sees them granted.
Personnel records, which could reveal anything from false statements during job applications to an officer's disciplinary history, "are a real treasure trove," he said.
"If you are doing a good job researching your case as a defense lawyer, you are always looking for impeachment material," Lustberg said.
The attorney demanded the release of documents on the firing last April of William Cullen, the former chief of the narcotics task force at the Bergen County Prosecutor's Office. He also requested disciplinary information on three other detectives who were investigated for misconduct.
If any detectives were going to take the witness stand against Martinez, attorney Brian Neary argued, his client had a constitutional right to know whether anything in their personnel files could be used to challenge their credibility.
Neary's request was dismissed last month when Martinez agreed to a plea deal. But it has raised the issue of the conflict between police officers' privacy rights and defendants' rights to challenge the officers' credibility.
Not surprisingly, law enforcement agencies aren't eager to open police personnel files. Releasing such records, they say, would violate privacy laws and expose the agencies to lawsuits.
"It's not something we would release in an ordinary course of business," said Passaic County Prosecutor James Avigliano.
Even in extraordinary circumstances, such as the internal investigation of police officers, personnel files must remain off-limits, said Mitchell Sklar, executive director of the New Jersey State Association of Chiefs of Police.
"To have an honest and thorough investigation of internal matters, there has to be some level of confidentiality," Sklar said.
In Passaic County, where the Prosecutor's Office handles more than 1,600 narcotics cases a year, authorities said requests for police personnel records are extremely rare. Avigliano did not remember receiving one since he became prosecutor in 2002.
For Neary and other lawyers seeking access to police personnel files, a 1998 appellate ruling provides what may be the most potent legal ammunition for such a move.
In 1996, Kareem Harris of Newark was charged with eluding, resisting arrest and assaulting two police detectives. During his trial in state court in Newark, Harris' lawyer sought to obtain the personnel records of city police Detective Mario Simmons, who arrested Harris and was scheduled to testify against him.
Harris' lawyer maintained that Simmons had been accused of harassing and shaking down narcotics dealers, and was suspended from the force amid investigations of departmental misconduct. To prove his contention, he said, he needed access to Simmons' personnel files. Then jurors could decide whether Simmons was a credible witness.
The trial judge denied the request after reviewing Simmons' personnel records behind closed doors. Harris eventually was convicted and sentenced to an aggregate term of 17 years in prison.
An appellate court refused to uphold the conviction, however.
"Defendant's right of confrontation by fully challenging Detective Simmons' credibility should not be compromised," the panel held, ordering the release of Simmons' personnel records.
Steven Gilson, a Union attorney who represented Harris in the appeal, praised the decision.
"I think it's absolutely essential to have the opportunity to review personnel records," he said.
Courts in other states have permitted the inspection of police personnel files based on mere allegations of an officer's misconduct.
"We have far more here," the appellate judges wrote.
Not 'a fishing expedition'
Neary continues to make similar requests in dozens of drug cases predating Cullen's firing. He said there is far more than mere allegations.
"This is not a general fishing expedition for any and all investigators," he said. "These are detectives against whom specific action was taken."
Cullen did not return phone calls seeking comment.
Bergen County Prosecutor John Molinelli has remained tight-lipped on the reasons for Cullen's firing, the identity of the other detectives and what disciplinary measures were taken against them. He said state and federal laws require him to keep personnel records confidential.
"I have to respect every person who works for me," he said.
Molinelli said he does not object to a private review of Cullen's personnel records by the judge and lawyers for both sides. But he said it's doubtful the records would be relevant in any narcotics case.
"To my knowledge, [Cullen] did not go out making arrests in any cases," he said. "I am not really sure why his personnel matter is relevant."
As for the other detectives, he said the measures taken against them were ordinary.
"I discipline staff members all the time," he said. "It's a fact of human nature that certain staff members will be disciplined."
Personnel for the 26-member drug task force include detectives from the Prosecutor's Office, the county Sheriff's Department, the DEA and local police departments. Defendants arrested by the task force and local police departments -- about 329 in 2004 and 251 in 2005 -- are brought to state court in Hackensack by three assistant prosecutors.
Molinelli said defense lawyers occasionally seek access to police personnel records, "but I don't recall being compelled to produce the personnel records of any police officer."
Lawrence Lustberg, a Newark defense attorney, said he often makes such requests -- and at times sees them granted.
Personnel records, which could reveal anything from false statements during job applications to an officer's disciplinary history, "are a real treasure trove," he said.
"If you are doing a good job researching your case as a defense lawyer, you are always looking for impeachment material," Lustberg said.