Manhattan’s top prosecutor, Alvin Bragg, has taken a significant step by disavowing more than 300 convictions tied to police officers who were found guilty of crimes, Your Content has learned.
These dismissals are part of a broader effort that has seen over 1,000 cases citywide being dropped due to connections with charged or convicted officers.
The abandoned convictions, primarily misdemeanors, date back to 1996 and involve nine officers who were later convicted of on-duty offenses, including bribery, illegal gun sales, perjury, and evidence planting. These officers are no longer part of the police force.
With the latest dismissals, more than 50 individuals have been released from incarceration, and fines have been lifted for 130 others, according to District Attorney Alvin Bragg.
The prosecutor emphasized that convictions relying on evidence from law enforcement officers who have broken the law cannot be upheld.
This move follows the actions of Bragg and other district attorneys in New York City, including Brooklyn, the Bronx, and Queens, who have collectively dismissed over 1,200 cases tied to convicted or charged officers since the beginning of 2021.
The wave of dismissals began when former narcotics detective Joseph Franco, who faced perjury charges, had his case thrown out in January due to the failure of Bragg’s office to provide required evidence.
This prompted the dismissal of numerous drug-related convictions linked to Franco, leading advocacy groups to call for the reconsideration of cases involving 22 other officers with criminal convictions or serious misconduct.
Elizabeth Felber from the Legal Aid Society praised the recent dismissals and encouraged Bragg and his colleagues to continue scrutinizing cases involving law enforcement personnel.
“The same standards applied to our clients charged with criminal conduct must be applied to those in law enforcement,” Felber stated , according to ABC News.
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