Suffolk takes needed step to improve police oversight

Suffolk County has taken a significant step to increase much-needed oversight of the conduct of its police force, but real reform will happen only if elected officials and department leaders truly want to change its culture of secrecy.

Starting this week, a unique and complex civilian oversight process begins. Members of the public with a complaint or compliment about the conduct of a police officer can file it directly and anonymously with the Suffolk Human Rights Commission. That person can use the SIVIL online platform to upload video and photographs. Previously, complaints were lodged at local precincts or by contacting the Internal Affairs Bureau. The complainant will be able to track, in real time, the process of the internal review and be notified of its disposition.

This expanded role for the Human Rights Commission includes the hiring of five trained investigators who will track the department's internal probe with the ability to review witness statements and evidence including bodycam videos. Investigators can advise the commission of any concerns about the handling of the internal affairs probe. The commission, which will not be privy to the specifics of any case, can then alert top police officials and the county executive's office that something is amiss.

It's a complicated and delicate arrangement that depends on the good faith of all involved for the process to succeed. It appears to have support from the police department, its unions, and reform advocates. But its functionality has yet to be tested. And it's not clear whether this new era will endure in subsequent administrations.

Still, this new approach will bring some transparency to the process, providing a public record of the number of complaints lodged and the aggregate outcomes such as exoneration or discipline. It requires all complaints about an officer's behavior to be entered into the system; no longer can disputes or disregard for the rules stay hidden at the precinct level.

Police departments for too long have been able to protect bad officers and cover up systemic corruption. Even after the repeal of a state law that protected police disciplinary files from being made public, departments are refusing to turn over requested materials or releasing only heavily redacted documents in response to freedom of information requests. Newsday currently has lawsuits against both Nassau and Suffolk police departments to compel them to comply with state law. Suffolk deputy county executives Jon Kaiman and Vanessa Baird-Streeter, who brought the new process to fruition, say that all investigations that began after the repeal of the state law will comply with the new disclosure requirements. 

Steve Bellone's administration deserves credit. Suffolk is further along in signaling change from the past and attempting to rebuild community trust while Nassau has done little to include civilian oversight of its policing. Transparency in Suffolk has increased; it remains to be seen if accountability will as well.