Queens DA To Release Secret Records On Dishonest Cops: Report

QUEENS, NY — The Queens district attorney's office will publicly release part of its internal cop credibility database following months of appeals from Gothamist, which revealed the database's existence earlier this year.

Prosecutors will release the records within the next two weeks, which include a roster of NYPD officers whose credibility is questionable, Gothamist reported Wednesday.

The database includes cops who have a record of substantiated misconduct allegations or testimony that judges deemed not credible, according to Gothamist, which first reported in April that prosecutors in all five boroughs of New York City have been quietly compiling such lists.

The Queens district attorney's office is releasing the records under the state Freedom of Information Law.

The records will not include details on police misconduct the NYPD has internally substantiated, which law enforcement officers say is shielded from the public under state civil rights law.

"While you may not have any intention to embarrass or humiliate the officers with this information, it does appear that you intend to report and publish this information," Assistant District Attorney Anastasia Spanakos told the news outlet. "This creates a substantial and realistic potential that disclosure would lead to embarrassment or humiliation of the officers listed in the documents."

Former prosecutors told Gothamist that their offices have used the lists to push for early plea deals without telling defense lawyers about potential issues with police witnesses involved in the case.

Read the full story in Gothamist.