Report: NYC Paid Almost $1 Billion To Settle NYPD Lawsuits

When the family of Sean Bell came to a $7.15 million settlement with the city, even though the police officers in the shooting were found not guilty of charges, it got a lot of people wondering just how willing the city is to pay out to make ugly cases go away. According to a new report by the AP, they are the most willing police department in the country: the city has paid nearly $1 billion in settlements over the last decade.

According to their report, the $964 million in payouts covers everything from brutality cases to patrol-car wrecks to stationhouse accidents, and it includes settlements and trial awards. NYC's numbers hugely dwarf any other major city, although the Big Apple has a much larger police force as well; Chicago, a third of NYC's population, has paid out an average of $39 million a year over the past six years. Officials say the payments cost less than insurance would, and officers themselves don't usually bear personal responsibility, which leaves it to taxpayers: "Right now it's open season against the city. Just file a lawsuit, and you're going to get money," said City Council member Peter Vallone, who has sponsored a bill he hopes will make it impossible to pay out dubious claims.

Some recent settlements: $250,000 over a subway arrest that resulted in a fractured cheekbone, $300,000 to cops whose boss had jock itch, and $9.9 million to a man wrongly framed by dirty cops and spent 18 years in prison.

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By Ben Yakas in News on October 14, 2010 6:35 PM

Comments [rss]

Jimbo853okg

You're right, AngryGod. I'm sorry.

But consider that today the City agreed to pay another $1 million. Do you have a better explanation?

Jimbo853okg

Considering what a mess the NYPD has become, Kelly's sway over Bloomberg is increasingly inexplicable.

I sometimes wonder if The Commish has video of Mayor Mike with farm animals or something.

ANGRYGOD11

What a disgusting thing to say about farm animals.

They deserve better.

5borough

Ron Kuby said something along the lines of:

"The Bronx Jury has been the greatest instrument of wealth redistribution in the twentieth century."

The citizen jurors are to blame, and anyone who has served on a jury in NYC can attest. Jurors think the "victim" should "get his" for just filing the case.

JacqueMehoff

that may be just in the bronx only because there's lots of poor people there but certainly not true of manhattan juries who are rich, wealthy, and usually sway towards conservative but try not to show it. but it all balances out in the end like that time I spent a month serving as a grand jury juror. yep, we got some people out.

izsosick

if cops did better police work and weren't so corrupt, nyc wouldn't have had to shell out that much loot.

but that's all in hindsight of course.

dgeee

I think the NYPD owe the people of NYC about a billion dollars worth of overtime then.

FelixtheCat Christine Quinns

Not tone but to be.

FelixtheCat Christine Quinns

Limiting the lawsuits doesn't help. Wheat needs tone done is rehaul the police dept and get rid of Kelly.

FelixtheCat Christine Quinns

Heroin cheese not dairy cheese. Dairy is bad and cruel.

JacqueMehoff

it's bad when even insurance companies won't touch you. the city is self insured in this matter. what does that say about the city's risk factor when it's cheaper to pay out than get insurance. It means we are screwed, up, down and sideways and the cops laugh all the way to their pension payments. but it will all balance out in the end.

ANGRYGOD11

It sounds bad, but that's $1 billion over 10 years. Its not just brutality cases, its also accidents and crashes that are going to happen in a crowded place like NYC.

Dogsbody

It's still $100m per year...

FelixtheCat Christine Quinns

Some wine and cheese (wink-wink) will do the trick

dadoc

Cheese comes from abused bovines who are held in yokes, pumped full of HGH, estrogens, etc, have their calves taken from them to be used for veal, then "downed" and shredded to feed pedigreed victims of animal imprisonment. Not to mention the millions of innocent bacteria who are slaughtered every time you take a bite with your sip of Merlot. You eat cheese? Oh, the horror, the horror...... :)

CaptainMXC

Hey Felix, can I come over and have some cheese? I promise I'm not a psycho.

FelixtheCat & Christine Quinn'

$1,000,000,000????????? WTFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFF???????????? This is ridiculous on top of all the overtime we pay them for parade watch. OMFG, I need a drink now!!!!

Petey

How many cops do you think want to stand in times square on new years eve on overtime, in the cold, instead of spending it with their spouse/significant other, or on thanksgiving standing in manhattan instead of spending it with their families, or on labor day at the west indian day parade, instead of at a bbq, or the 4th of july fireworks instead of a bbq?