NCJ Number: 193782
Title: Drug Related Police Corruption: The Miami Experience (From Police Misconduct: A Reader for the 21st Century, P 132-144, 2001, Michael J. Palmiotto, ed. -- See NCJ-193774)
Author(s): Kim M. Lersch
Date Published: 2001
Annotation: In the late 1980's, nearly 10 percent of the entire Miami Police
Department (Florida) was suspended or fired after a drug-related
scandal; this paper explores the events that led up to this
corruption scandal, and lessons are drawn for other police
agencies.
Abstract: Miami is first profiled as a city of change and unrest in the
1970's and 1980's, followed by an overview of the nature and
impact of the Cuban migration to Miami beginning in the
mid-1960's, which included criminals released by Castro from
Cuban jails for migration to the United States, ex-convicts, and
nearly 600 immigrants with various mental illnesses. Next, the
author examines the relaxed screening mechanisms for police
applicants under consent decrees and affirmative action policies
in the early 1980's. Among the new officers recruited by the
Miami Police Department (MPD) during a hiring blitz under lax
standards was a group of 19 Hispanic officers who became known as
the River Cops. These officers were eventually charged with a
variety of State and Federal crimes, including using the MPD as a
racketeering enterprise to commit such felonies as murder,
threats that involved murder, civil rights violations, robbery,
possession of narcotics, and various conspiracies. The officers
were convicted of a variety of offenses and given prison
sentences that averaged 23 years. This paper traces the evolution
of the corrupt and criminal careers of these officers. Along with
the River Cops, however, the Miami of the early 1980's was marked
by a number of highly publicized scandals that involved
questionable acts committed by persons of power and influence.
During this same period, other cities were experiencing problems
with the behavior of their officers. The U.S. General Accounting
Office (1998) in its review of recent cases of drug-related
corruption, identified a number of prevention techniques designed
to reduce the prevalence of corruption. Among the suggested means
were making a commitment to integrity from the rank-and-file
officers to top administrators; establishing and enforcing
standards of accountability; raising employment standards;
extending the officer probationary period and establishing an
independent body to oversee agency personnel and the internal
affairs unit; and a strong commitment to community policing. 20
references
Main Term(s): Police corruption
Index Term(s): Drug Related Crime; Drug smuggling; Florida; Police corruption causes; Police misconduct; Police personnel selection
Sponsoring Agency: Prentice Hall Publishing
Sale Source: Prentice Hall Publishing
Publisher: http://www.policetrainingstore.com
Page Count: 13
Format: Book (Softbound)
Type: Report (Study/Research)
Language: English
Country: United States of America
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