ACLU-NJ News - Police Practices

Day 1: Pendergrass and Gbor v. City of Newark

Excessive Force, Internal Affairs and Attempted Bribery
Settled May 2010
$150,000

On June 13, 2006, Newark Police Department (NPD) Officer Michael Walker beat plaintiff Cornell Pendergrass at 175 First Street in Newark by repeated punches to the face, which ultimately required doctors to wire Mr. Pendergrass' jaw shut for several weeks. Co-plaintiff Minisiah Gbor attempted to videotape the officers beating other people in the vicinity. When they saw her videotaping, Walker and his partner, Officer Larry Brown, assaulted her as well. When Mr. Pendergrass filed an internal affairs complaint about the incident, an acquaintance received a threatening telephone call in retaliation for the complaint. Some weeks later, Walker attempted to bribe Mr. Pendergrass to "forget about everything." On or about May 19, 2010, the plaintiffs' federal lawsuit (No. 08-cv-2936) was settled for $150,000. Adding insult to injury, the City reimbursed Walker's lawyer an additional $39,037 in taxpayer money for legal fees incurred in defending the case.

This was not Officer Walker's only brush with the law. In 2009, he was indicted for making false statements that led to an innocent man being misidentified in a photo array. (Indictment No. 09-08-2191-I). NPD's internal affairs unit initially suspended him after their indictment, and then reinstated him. In April 2010, their trial ended in a hung jury. Retrial information is unknown.

Note: None of Pendergrass's or Gbor's allegations have been proven or disproven in court. While the parties freely agreed to settle this case, all that is known for sure is that Newark, for whatever reason, decided that it would rather pay Pendergrass and Gbor $150,000, rather than take the matter to trial. Perhaps the defendants' decision to settle was done to save further legal expense and the costs of trying what were in fact exaggerated or meritless claims. Or, perhaps the claims were true and the defendants wanted to avoid being embarrassed at trial. This is the problem when cases settle before trial—it is impossible to know the truth of what really happened—or what consequences, if any, came to the individuals accused in the suit.

Lima v. Newark Police Department

On January 23, 2008, the American Civil Liberties Union of New Jersey and the Seton Hall Center for Social Justice filed a lawsuit against the Newark Police Department on behalf of newspaper editor Roberto Lima, whom police arrested and held in custody until he relinquished photos his staff took of a dead body found in a Newark alleyway. Despite offering Newark police the original photographs his photographer had taken of the body, Newark police handcuffed Mr. Lima to a bench until he agreed to give them all copies and originals. In December, our complaint was amended to include claims against Essex County prosecutors and investigators after the Newark Police Department indicated that they relied on the advice of those individuals.

Current Status: The case is ongoing.

ACLU-NJ Calls for Thorough Investigation of Shooting in Newark Park

Newark—The ACLU-NJ calls on the State Office of Attorney General to conduct a thorough investigation of the tragic July 16, 2010 shooting death of a citizen by an Essex County Sheriff's officer, and has filed a public information request with the Essex County Sheriff's Office to shed greater light on the incident.

"Considering the seriousness of the incident, and many unanswered questions, this investigation demands the legitimacy that only an external review can provide," said Deborah Jacobs, executive director for the ACLU-NJ. "The public's confidence in this investigation depends on whether the professionals undertaking it operate independently, outside of the county structure."

The questionable circumstances surrounding the shooting in Branch Brook Park of DeFarra "Dean" Gaymon, which allegedly followed a confrontation with the officer who shot him, demand an in-depth, independent review from the Attorney General's Shooting Response Team.

Many questions still remain. Inconsistent reports in media have painted an unclear picture of what actually happened at the scene. Additionally, the ACLU-NJ has not learned whether Essex County immediately reported the shooting to the Attorney General's office, as required by policy, nor how soon after the incident the officer was questioned or discussed the incident with his supervisors.

Normally the State Division of Criminal Justice, the office under the attorney general's supervision that law enforcement must notify when force used by an officer involves death or injury, assigns the County Prosecutor's Office to carry out investigations. However, the ACLU-NJ believes the Division of Criminal Justice should cede the investigation instead to the experts at the Shooting Response Team, who can add greater accountability to the inquiry.

The ACLU-NJ's request filed today with the Essex County Sheriff's Office asks for radio transmissions, use-of-force reports, arrest reports and other data that could shed light on the shooting. Today's actions are part of a larger ACLU-NJ effort both statewide and in Essex County advocating for best practices in policing.

ACLU-NJ Celebrates 50 Years on the Front Lines of Freedom

Newark, N.J. - For five decades, the American Civil Liberties Union of New Jersey has been a gale force in the most critical social debates of our time and a vigilant guardian of civil rights for all.

In June, the ACLU-NJ will mark the 50th anniversary of its founding and celebrate its standing as one of the largest and most active affiliates in the nation. Created to counter the growing pressures on civil liberties in the state, the affiliate's first official meeting took place on the night of June 16, 1960. Since its start, the affiliate, which has continued to keep its headquarters in Newark, has seen its membership multiply nearly 10-fold, from 1,600 people to more than 15,000.

"We believe that the liberties in the Bill of Rights belong to every American, to all the people in New Jersey regardless of their political beliefs, race, religion or national origin," ACLU-NJ founder and longtime President Emil Oxfeld said in the original press release announcing the formation of the state's affiliate. "We believe these freedoms must be exercised if democracy in our state is to grow and thrive."

Oxfeld went on to list issues that desperately needed attention at the time - due process, racial discrimination, the separation of church and state, and freedom from censorship - all principles the ACLU still defends daily.

"While some of the issues raised in our cases over the years seem archaic by today's standards, many haven't changed at all," said ACLU-NJ Executive Director Deborah Jacobs, who has led the affiliate since 1999, including during the biggest membership spike in its history. "The law has advanced remarkably in areas like women's rights, lesbian and gay rights, and safeguarding personal privacy, but with issues like free speech, police practices and religious freedom, no fight ever stays won."

"The ACLU of New Jersey has been a leader in the crucial civil liberties battles of our time," said Anthony D. Romero, executive director of the national ACLU. "While each new era brings a wave of assaults on freedom, the ACLU of New Jersey responds swiftly and decisively, protecting the rights of all Garden State residents. It has proven its value on the American political landscape."

Since opening its doors and springing into action - its first official undertaking was commending the Clifton Library's stance against banning books like Lady Chatterley's Lover - the ACLU-NJ has doggedly worked for justice and equality in New Jersey.

In its first decade the ACLU-NJ took strong action following the 1967 Newark Rebellion. Staffers took to the streets in the aftermath, painstakingly cataloguing police abuses to the ACLU-NJ would refer to in its demands for reform. The New Jersey affiliate also emerged even more progressive than the national ACLU, becoming one of the first state affiliates to take a stand against the Vietnam War.

Since those early years, the ACLU-NJ has grown into one of the country's largest and most active state affiliates, with a record of milestones that has earned it a role on the national stage. Among its accomplishments, the ACLU-NJ:

Defended the rights of women in schools, from a tennis star (represented by Ruth Bader Ginsburg) who won the right to play on the high school boys' tennis team, to the Princeton student who turned its Ivy League all-male eating clubs co-ed.
Blocked a bill requiring a "one-minute period of silence" for prayer in public schools in 1983.
Defended 12 motorists who had been racially profiled on the New Jersey Turnpike in the late 1990s.
Propelled New Jersey to become the first state in the nation to grant equal standing to gay and lesbian couples jointly adopting in 1997.
Successfully challenged the state's ban on late-term abortion in 1998 and a law requiring parents to sign off on a minor's abortion in 2000.
Challenged secret detentions and organized locally, fending off attempts to chip away at individual rights following the Sept. 11, 2001 terrorist attacks.
Defeated local laws written to exclude immigrants from housing, won humane working conditions for immigrants, and helped enforce the rights of young immigrants to attend public school.
Established stronger First Amendment protections in schools and malls, as well as developments run by homeowners associations.

The ACLU-NJ is celebrating the clients, attorneys, leaders and volunteers - many involved in the cases highlighted above - who have built its legacy, from its founders to its future. The stories of these 50 Faces of Liberty can be found at the ACLU-NJ website, http://www.aclu-nj.org

"Society has changed dramatically since our founding, but we've never lost the fire that fuels the ACLU's advocacy," Jacobs added. "We can't always predict what challenges lie ahead for liberty in a changing world, but whatever they are, the ACLU stands ready to defend the fundamental rights of ordinary Americans."

The year-long commemoration will culminate November 4 at the NJ Freedom Fest: A night of laughter and liberties, hosted by comedian Jimmy Tingle and featuring faces from the ACLU past and present, to be held at the Heldrich Hotel in New Brunswick.

Court Unhands Police Use of Force Information to Public

WEST MILFORD — In a victory for open-government and police accountability, the New Jersey Appellate Division ruled today that "use of force" reports, which document the circumstances surrounding a police officer's use of force against a citizen, are government records that must be made available to the public under the Open Public Records Act (OPRA).

"This decision opens a necessary window for advocates, journalists, and above all, members of the public," said ACLU-NJ Open Governance Staff Attorney Bobby Conner, who argued the case before the court in June. "The public has a right to know when police force is justified and when it's used recklessly. Replacing secrecy with sunshine allows the public to truly make progress in ensuring the government follows its own laws."

The ACLU-NJ's Open Governance Project filed a friend of the court brief challenging West Milford's failure to disclose use of force reports, requested by resident Martin O'Shea. The town claimed the records should be exempt from public access under OPRA as "criminal investigatory records" both because they pertain — however tangentially — to criminal investigations and because no specific law requires police departments to keep use of force reports.

However, as the ACLU-NJ argued and the court upheld, the Attorney General enforces a policy requiring all law enforcement officers to complete a use of force report any time physical, mechanical or deadly force is used against another person, giving the policy the force of law. Moreover, because use of force reports are used anytime a police officer uses force, irrespective of any criminal investigation, West Milford's claim was further invalidated.

Use of force reports extend beyond a public record for the ACLU-NJ, which advocates for the state's local police departments to adopt best practices and works toward greater police transparency and accountability. An ACLU-NJ report - The Crisis Inside Police Internal Affairs (1.2mb PDF) - released in June 2009 found that nearly every police department across the state violated the Attorney General's Internal Affairs Policies and Procedures when citizens complained against police, revealing cracks within police departments that threaten accountability to the public.

"Giving citizens insight into how police officers exercise their power places the police's accountability directly in the public's hands," said ACLU-NJ Executive Director Deborah Jacobs. "The first step to understanding whether the police are acting in our best interest is to understand the actions they're taking."

ACLU-NJ and Police Organization Resolve Sexual Orientation Dispute

NEWARK - The American Civil Liberties Union of New Jersey (ACLU-NJ) and the National Organization of Black Law Enforcement Executives (NOBLE) announced the resolution of a dispute involving two women who were turned away from a fundraising dance hosted by the organization. The women claimed they and their friends were excluded based on their sexual orientation or gender expression.

Towana Christopher

"We are grateful that the matter is settled, but even more, we are grateful that this resolution promises to help other lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender individuals," stated Cheryl Rogers who, along with her partner Towana Christopher, claim that they and friends were not welcomed at a NOBLE sponsored fundraising dance held in April in Edison, NJ. "While no one should have to face discrimination, we are glad that our experience can lead to stronger ties and greater understanding between police officers and the LGBT community."

While NOBLE did not concede that any act of discrimination occurred, the two groups resolved the dispute amicably, with each gaining a better understanding of the other's views. NOBLE will extend outreach to the lesbian, gay, transgendered and bisexual (LGBT) community, and the complainants have agreed to not to pursue any legal action. Both parties expressed an interest to move forward with a strong commitment to equal rights.

"NOBLE understands the destructive power of discrimination, and we handle every complaint with the seriousness it deserves," said Jessie Lee, Jr., NOBLE's National Executive Director. "We welcome this resolution as a way to help better educate all New Jerseyans about their right to be free from discrimination."

NOBLE, recognizing the pivotal role of law enforcement in building ties with the LGBT community, has agreed to expand its outreach by appearing at events to educate the LGBT community about hate crimes laws and bias crimes. The organization will also post a statement on its website each June - to coincide with Pride Month - expressing its support for equal treatment from law enforcement regardless of anyone's sexual orientation or gender expression.

"We are proud that this resolution creates an opportunity for police officers to build a bridge with the LGBT community," stated ACLU-NJ Legal Director Ed Barocas, who represented the two women. "This resolution helps not only the women involved, but the rights of all members of the LGBT community."

NOBLE, headquartered in Alexandria, Virginia, was founded in 1976 with a mission to ensure equity in the administration of justice in the provision of public service to all communities, and to serve as the conscience of law enforcement by being committed to justice by action.

The ACLU-NJ, based in Newark, implements legal, legislative and public education programs in conjunction with large numbers of volunteers to advance the ACLU's goals of liberty and justice for all.

ACLU Hits the Street Informing Newark of Rights

Newark — The American Civil Liberties Union of New Jersey is conducting a public education blitz throughout the city of Newark today to raise awareness of public's rights when confronted by the police. ACLU-NJ Volunteers will be distributing hundreds of "Bust Cards" to passersby in the Central and East Wards.

"The number of complaints to our office about police practices in Newark keeps growing," said Ed Barocas, Legal Director for the ACLU-NJ. "We want to arm people with knowledge they need to assert their rights."

The ACLU-NJ's "Bust Cards" provide clear and simple information about how best to manage a confrontation with police. The distribution of the cards, available in English, Spanish and Portuguese, falls on October 22, the International Day Against Police Brutality. Volunteers will distribute them at Penn Station, in the Ironbound and other downtown locations.

Police practices are a top priority for the ACLU-NJ which has led advocacy for best police practices throughout New Jersey. It recently released a report on access to Internal Affairs in local police departments, which receive little oversight. The organization will soon release a report on police use of Confidential Informants in New Jersey. In addition, the ACLU has several ongoing lawsuits against Newark and other police agencies.

Bust Cards

English Bust Card (1mb PDF)
Spanish Bust Card (69k PDF)
Portuguese Bust Card (1.3mb PDF)

ACLU-NJ Sues Newark Police For Illegal Stop of Young Football Players

'Pop Warner Three' held at gunpoint and told they had no rights

NEWARK — The American Civil Liberties Union of New Jersey announced that it filed a lawsuit today against the Newark Police Department on behalf of two African American teenagers and their Pop Warner football coach who were held at gunpoint in an illegal police stop.

"Our clients were subjected to atrocious treatment by the police, which no one should have to suffer," said Avidan Cover of Gibbons P.C., who represents the Pop Warner Three. "We filed this lawsuit to ensure that these young men receive justice and that these sorts of abuses never happen again."

Faheem Loyal & Tony Ivey Jr.

On the night of June 14, 2008, then-13-year-old Tony Ivey Jr., then-15-year-old Faheem Loyal and their football coach Kelvin Lamar James were pulled over and abused by several Newark police officers after a day centered around their Pop Warner football team, the North Ward Scorpions. They were pulled out of the car in the rain at gunpoint, held with guns pointed at them while police searched them and their car and, when James commented that the officers' search of his car violated his rights, he was told by an officer in obscene, threatening language that they didn't have any rights and that the police could do what they want and "had no rules." The three had committed no crimes, and a thorough search of the car turned up only football equipment.

Ivey, Loyal and James were left shaken up and frightened by the incident and feel ongoing distrust of police officers. "I used to think I might become a police officer," said Ivey. "But not anymore."

"I count on the police to protect my son, and instead they threatened his life," said Cassandra Jetter-Ivey, Tony's mother. "This isn't just about three boys at a police stop - this is about making sure it doesn't happen again. This is about restoring our trust in the police."

One of the most troubling aspects of this case was the handling of Jetter-Ivey's Internal Affairs complaint about the matter. It was initially lost, then wasn't properly followed-up on, and at one point Jetter-Ivey was told by an officer that the complaint was transferred to the gang unit because the incident involved three black youths. In fact, to this day, the families have never received a response to their Internal Affairs complaints.

The ACLU-NJ brought the incident to the attention of the City of Newark, and later to the public with a march through the city on October 22, 2008. Newark officials expressed concern and made progress with the ACLU-NJ on implementing a number of reforms that will make Internal Affairs more accessible, such as putting information about how to file a complaint on the Newark Police website, and agreeing to develop pamphlets about how to file a complaint. However, many more reforms are needed, particularly the establishment of an independent monitor.

Independent monitoring is the keystone to successful policing at the city and state levels. Independent monitors — effective in cities like Denver, San Jose, Boise and Portland — have turned poor departments around and transformed good departments into great ones. The New Jersey State Police has improved dramatically with the benefit of a monitor. And as the state police can attest to, an independent monitor's influence can bring technologies and resources that police officers need to do their jobs well. Independent monitors also help departments identify and remove the bad apples that spoil the reputation of the majority of officers who perform their difficult jobs with integrity.

"We can't fix the cracks in Internal Affairs if we can't see them, which is why we need an independent monitor to shine a light into the Newark Police Department," said ACLU-NJ Executive Director Deborah Jacobs. "A flashlight into the police department can prevent a nightstick to the chest. Innocent residents of Newark need a department they can have faith in for the city to be safe."

In addition to advocating for reforms of police practices, the ACLU also represents police officers whose rights have been violated or who have acted as whistleblowers, as documented in a forthcoming report about Internal Affairs units around the state, specifically delving into Newark's operations.

The case is captioned Jetter-Ivey v. Newark Police Department. The complaint alleges that the police officers' action violate the students' and coach's right to be free from unlawful searches and unlawful detention, and to equal treatment; and violates their rights under the New Jersey Civil Rights Act and the New Jersey Law Against Discrimination. The lawsuit demands that Newark takes all steps necessary to establish proper training and supervision with respect to searches and detentions, unlawful discrimination, and the proper handling of complaints. It also seeks damages for the unlawful actions taken by the police against the students and coach.

ACLU-NJ Celebrates New Chapter in Police Accountability

The American Civil Liberties Union of New Jersey celebrated a turning point today for New Jersey's police with Governor Jon Corzine's signing of the Law Enforcement Professional Standards Act of 2009, making monitoring of the State Police permanent, with oversight conducted by the New Jersey Office of the Attorney General. The organization has long fought to make such legislation a reality.

"This law marks a milestone that was ten years in the making, and is a huge victory for everyone in New Jersey," said ACLU-NJ Legal Director Ed Barocas. "However, the State Police only accounts for a fraction of the state's police officers. We now must focus on bringing the same level of accountability to every police department in New Jersey."

The ACLU-NJ has worked toward monitoring of the state police for a decade, beginning with its lawsuit on behalf of numerous victims of racial profiling on the New Jersey Turnpike. Yet, years later, racial profiling remains a concern on the southern end of the Turnpike, where 30 percent of people stopped are African American, compared to the 20 percent in the north, as the ACLU-NJ testified to the legislature this spring. Under the federal consent decree in effect since 2000, monitors only checked whether a driver who was pulled over was breaking the law, rather than viewing the overall pattern of stops, including whether African Americans are stopped at disproportionately higher rates.

With an independent state monitor of the State Police in place, the ACLU-NJ will shift its focus to New Jersey's over-500 local police departments. This spring the ACLU-NJ released the results of a survey - The Crisis Inside Police Internal Affairs (1.2mb PDF) - investigating nearly every department's practices for taking complaints against officers. The report revealed that it was difficult to even file a complaint, and almost impossible to receive correct information or a just resolution.

The problems with police are compounded by New Jersey's status as one of the only states without licensing for police officers. Licensing protects communities against problematic police officers who can escape discipline by simply moving departments.

"New Jersey stands at a monumental crossroads with the passage of this law," Barocas said. "We can see how far we've come, but at the same time we can see how much further we need to go. Most police officers perform their difficult jobs with great integrity. Laws like the one signed today can protect the good reputations almost all police officers deserve, as well as the safety of our communities, by identifying the officers who soil their good names."

Newark Mayor Cory Booker Earns 'C' Average Junior Year

NEWARK - School is out for Newark's students, but Mayor Cory Booker's junior-year report card on civil liberties has just been released by the ACLU-NJ. The mayor passed, but not with flying colors. At the end of his third year in office, the Stanford and Yale-educated All-American and Rhodes Scholar earned a "C" average in civil liberties, with his worst grade, a "D," in the area of Police Practices.

"Mayor Booker deserves high marks in public speaking, but he has room to improve on the subject of civil liberties," said ACLU-NJ Executive Director Deborah Jacobs. "The Mayor came to City Hall promising to protect civil liberties, but when it's time to put those principles into practice, he hasn't lived up to his potential."

The good news: Mayor Booker earned a "B" on Immigrant Rights, and a "B" in Open Government.

The bad news: Mayor Booker earned a "C-" for Free Speech, and a "D" in Police Practices - and just barely.

To review the Mayor's report card in full detail, see: http://www.aclu-nj.org/newarkreportcard (230k PDF)

"This report card is more than just handing out a grade -- we're looking at the real lives of people in this city and adding up the costs to their rights," said Jacobs. "The Booker administration still needs to learn that you can't have public safety without public trust, and you can only earn that trust by respecting the rights of the people."

ACLU-NJ News - Police Practices

Day 1: Pendergrass and Gbor v. City of Newark

Excessive Force, Internal Affairs and Attempted Bribery
Settled May 2010
$150,000

Related Documents

Lima v. Newark Police Department

ACLU-NJ Calls for Thorough Investigation of Shooting in Newark Park

Related Documents

ACLU-NJ Celebrates 50 Years on the Front Lines of Freedom

Court Unhands Police Use of Force Information to Public

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ACLU-NJ and Police Organization Resolve Sexual Orientation Dispute

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ACLU Hits the Street Informing Newark of Rights

Bust Cards

ACLU-NJ Sues Newark Police For Illegal Stop of Young Football Players

'Pop Warner Three' held at gunpoint and told they had no rights

Related Content

ACLU-NJ Celebrates New Chapter in Police Accountability

Newark Mayor Cory Booker Earns 'C' Average Junior Year

ACLU-NJ News - Police Practices

Day 1: Pendergrass and Gbor v. City of Newark

Excessive Force, Internal Affairs and Attempted Bribery Settled May 2010 $150,000

Related Documents

Lima v. Newark Police Department

ACLU-NJ Calls for Thorough Investigation of Shooting in Newark Park

Related Documents

ACLU-NJ Celebrates 50 Years on the Front Lines of Freedom

Court Unhands Police Use of Force Information to Public

Related Content

ACLU-NJ and Police Organization Resolve Sexual Orientation Dispute

Related Content

ACLU Hits the Street Informing Newark of Rights

Bust Cards

ACLU-NJ Sues Newark Police For Illegal Stop of Young Football Players

'Pop Warner Three' held at gunpoint and told they had no rights

Related Content

ACLU-NJ Celebrates New Chapter in Police Accountability

Newark Mayor Cory Booker Earns 'C' Average Junior Year

Excessive Force, Internal Affairs and Attempted Bribery
Settled May 2010
$150,000