Long Island

james burke story gallery

Nicole Fuller

Drugs were found in the prison cell of former Suffolk County Police Chief James Burke at the federal detention center in Pennsylvania where he’s serving a 46-month sentence for beating a prisoner and orchestrating a cover-up of the assault, sources said on Monday.
Multiple sources said prison officials discovered oxycodone — a controlled substance prescribed by doctors for pain management — taped under a shelf inside the personal locker of Burke, who has been housed at a low-security federal prison in Allenwood, Pennsylvania, since late December.
Burke, 52, who was Suffolk’s highest-ranking uniformed officer for four years until his resignation in November 2015, was segregated from other inmates after the oxycodone was found recently and is undergoing drug testing, the sources said. The FBI in Pennsylvania is investigating the source of the drugs, sources said.
The FBI declined to comment. 
In a statement Tuesday morning, the Federal Bureau of Prisons said that “for privacy reasons” the department “does not discuss whether a particular inmate is or has been the subject of allegations, investigations, or sanctions for misconduct in prison.”
Burke’s lawyer, John Meringolo of Manhattan, denied that drugs were found in Burke’s locker but said: “My client denies all allegations. He’ll be vindicated.”
Prison officials initially thought the drugs could have been synthetic marijuana, sold under the names K2 or Spice, but determined through laboratory testing that the drug was oxycodone, the sources said.
“That is utterly false,” Meringolo said. “That is so far from the truth.” 
Burke pleaded guilty in February 2016 to obstruction of justice and violating the civil rights of prisoner Christopher Loeb, a self-admitted drug addict and petty thief. 
In December 2012, Loeb broke into Burke’s departmental sport utility vehicle and stole the chief’s duffel bag, finding a gun belt, magazines of ammunition, a box of cigars, sex toys and pornography, prosecutors said.
Burke, a resident of St. James, acted “as a dictator” as he sought to cover up his crime, a conspiracy that impacted the entire police department, according to U.S. Judge Leonard Wexler, who sentenced Burke. 
Federal prosecutors said in a pre-sentencing memorandum that Burke’s cover-up scheme included “the recruiting of high-ranking officials from other county agencies to assist him in the obstruction and to give teeth to his threats.”
“SCPD members who witnessed the assault came under direct and extreme pressure from the defendants and others to conceal it,” prosecutors said.
Burke apologized to Loeb at his sentencing. Loeb, 30, of Smithtown, was freed from prison in January after a Suffolk judge set aside his guilty plea in the Burke theft as a result of perjured testimony given by police officers at Burke’s direction. 
Burke was held at the Metropolitan Detention Center in Brooklyn before being transferred to the Pennsylvania prison in late December. He did not request any special housing or security arrangements to keep him from potential harm or harassment by other inmates in Allenwood because of his former status as a high-ranking police officer, sources have said. 
In the Brooklyn detention center, however, he lived in a unit that did not house violent offenders such as street gang members.
At the Pennsylvania prison, he was housed in a three-man cubicle — each prisoner has a bed and a locker — before he was moved to a special housing unit after the drugs were found, a source said.

Crime

LIBURK0509

Sources: Drugs found in ex-Suffolk police chief James Burke’s prison cell

Sources: Drugs found in ex-police chief Burke’s prison cell

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The Smithtown man who was beaten and threatened by former Suffolk Police Chief of Department James Burke was freed Tuesday as a result of perjured testimony given by police officers at Burke’s direction.
State Supreme Court Justice Richard Ambro set aside Christopher Loeb’s guilty plea to criminal possession of a weapon, for which he was sentenced to 3 years in prison.
A nervous but relieved Loeb, 30, said later at his lawyer’s office that it’s appropriate that he is free while Burke remains in prison for violating Loeb’s civil rights and covering it up. 
The beating of Loeb led to Burke getting sent to federal prison for 46 months and numerous sealed guilty pleas by other Suffolk police officials involved in the cover-up. It also spurred an investigation that has targeted officials in the office of Suffolk District Attorney Thomas Spota, Burke’s friend and mentor.
“For the first time in four years, I can actually enjoy my freedom knowing that James Burke is incarcerated and unable to harm me, my family or any other resident of Suffolk County,” Loeb said, thanking both federal prosecutors and his attorneys, Bruce Barket and Donna Aldea of Garden City. “It’s shameful that it took an outside agency to come into Suffolk County and unmask this county.”
Yet Loeb said he still couldn’t relax.
“I don’t think I’m ever going to feel safe,” he said. “There are numerous people out there who did dirt with Burke.”
That’s why he said Burke’s imprisonment is more meaningful than his own freedom — something to which he’s still adjusting. “I’m still asking permission to go the bathroom,” he said.
Barket joked, “You have my permission.”
Loeb is not yet done with the legal system. Although Ambro and special prosecutor William Ferris agreed to vacate Loeb’s guilty plea, the original indictment, which includes stolen property and other charges, was reinstated. Loeb again pleaded not guilty.
But Barket, noting that Loeb has already served more than his entire sentence because of an additional probation violation, said it’s impossible for his client to serve more time in prison, and Ferris agreed.
In addition, Barket said no conviction is possible, with so many of the charges the result of lies by police.
“The indictment is literally built on a hill of perjury,” Barket said. “The evidence is only as good as the people who bring it to court.”
For now, all sides agree that Loeb’s guilty plea was unjust. He entered the plea after a pretrial hearing in which several officers and detectives testified under oath that they didn’t see Burke beat Loeb.
“A plea of guilty based on perjured testimony at his pretrial testimony cannot stand,” said Ferris, appointed because of Spota’s ties to Burke. Convictions should not be upheld when they are based on violations of the Constitution, he said.
Suffolk police did not respond to a request for comment.
When Burke pleaded guilty last year in federal court to violating Loeb’s civil rights and covering it up, he said Loeb accurately described how Burke treated him. Loeb had broken into Burke’s police vehicle and stole a duffel bag that he said contained “disgusting pornography,” a gun belt without a gun and other items.
Burke took his property back before it could be kept as evidence and later beat Loeb and threatened to kill him.
Loeb, who has struggled with heroin addiction, spoke Tuesday of the “challenges” that lie ahead.
“I have the faith and hope necessary to become the productive, successful and happy person I want to be,” he said.

Suffolk

LILOEB0201

Christopher Loeb goes free as guilty plea is set aside

Loeb goes free as result of perjured testimony by cops

Newsday

The Smithtown heroin addict who was beaten and threatened by former Suffolk police Chief of Department James Burke will be freed Tuesday after a special prosecutor agrees to vacate his conviction, his attorney said Monday.
Burke’s beating of Christopher Loeb — and the extensive cover-up he orchestrated — led to Burke’s resignation, getting sentenced to 46 months in federal prison, numerous sealed guilty pleas by other Suffolk police officials involved in the cover-up, and an investigation that has targeted officials in the office of Suffolk District Attorney Thomas Spota, Burke’s friend and mentor.
Loeb, 30, pleaded guilty to criminal possession of a weapon after a pretrial hearing in 2013 and was sentenced to 3 years in prison. The plea came after a pretrial hearing in which several officers and detectives testified under oath that they didn’t see Burke beat Loeb.
Loeb’s attorney, Bruce Barket of Garden City, sought to vacate the plea because it was the result of perjured testimony by police. Once state Supreme Court Justice Richard Ambro sets aside the plea, based on an agreement by both sides, Loeb will face trial on the original charges unless they are dismissed. Barket said Loeb will never plead guilty again.
“We look forward to Chris’ complete exoneration,” Barket said. “This is a significant step.”
Attorney William Ferris, who is serving as a special prosecutor in the case because of Burke’s ties to Spota, declined to comment.
“The police — including the chief of police — tampered with physical evidence, filed false police reports and lied to prosecutors and a judge,” Barket said.
Suffolk police did not respond to requests for comment.
When Burke pleaded guilty last year in federal court to violating Loeb’s civil rights and covering it up, he said Loeb accurately described how Burke treated him. Loeb had broken into Burke’s police vehicle and stole a duffel bag that he said contained “disgusting pornography,” a gun belt without a gun and other items.
Burke took his property back before it could be kept as evidence and later beat Loeb and threatened to kill him.

LILOEB0131

Christopher Loeb’s conviction to be vacated, lawyer says

Attorney: Man beaten by ex-police chief to be freed

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Members of the Suffolk police department who helped former chief James Burke cover up his beating of a heroin-addicted thief have been indicted and pleaded guilty in secret proceedings in federal court, according to a motion filed Wednesday in state Supreme Court.
The motion, filed in Riverhead on behalf of the man Burke beat, Christopher Loeb, 30, of Smithtown, seeks to set aside Loeb’s guilty plea to criminal possession of a weapon after a pretrial hearing in 2013. Loeb was sentenced to 3 years in prison in 2014.
“Criminal prosecutions should not be built on egregious police misconduct and perjury,” said Loeb’s attorney, Bruce Barket of Garden City. “It decimates the integrity of the system.”
Barket said attorneys involved in the case have told him at least six officers and detectives have pleaded guilty to crimes. Burke pleaded guilty in February to beating Loeb on Dec. 14, 2012, and orchestrating a cover-up, and is serving a prison sentence of 46 months. 
“No one currently employed by the Suffolk County Police Department has pled guilty to any crimes in connection with Christopher Loeb,” said Assistant Police Commissioner Justin Meyers. Several officers and detectives associated with the Loeb case have since retired. Meyers would not say if others have retired or been fired. He added that when Commissioner Timothy Sini took office earlier this year, he “took aggressive steps to ensure the integrity of the department.”
Beyond that, Meyers said, “Our partners at the U.S. Attorney’s office have asked us not to comment and we are going to honor their request.”
A spokesman for the U.S. attorney’s office for the Eastern District declined to comment on Barket’s claim.
Sources familiar with the case confirmed law enforcement officers were indicted, but would not say how many.
In one of the indictments a Suffolk officer was charged with conspiracy to commit obstruction of justice, and agreed to cooperate with authorities as part of a plea deal, sources said. That officer has not been sentenced.
In another case, an officer who had “significant information” to provide against Burke but was deemed to be less culpable was granted immunity, according to the sources.
Loeb testified at the pretrial hearing that he had stolen a duffel bag from Burke’s police-issued sport utility vehicle, and said that in addition to a gun belt, it contained “disgusting pornography,” sex toys and other items. Burke personally retrieved the duffel bag before it could be kept as evidence.
During the hearing before state Supreme Court Justice Martin Efman, officers and detectives denied searching Loeb’s house on Burke’s orders and said they did so only to assist probation officers who were arresting Loeb for having brass knuckles.
Officers and detectives also testified they saw Burke take a look at Loeb at the Fourth Precinct in Hauppauge, but denied witnessing or participating in a beating. Efman found the officers to be credible, but Barket said Burke’s guilty plea showed they were all lying.
The witnesses at the pretrial hearing included Det. Thomas Cottingham, Det. Anthony Leto, Det. Christopher Nealis, Det. Kenneth Regensburg, Det. Keith Sinclair, Sgt. Michael Kelly and Officer Brian Draiss. Witnesses said Det. Kenneth Bombace was involved in the case, too.
Since Burke’s plea, Loeb’s new motion says that “numerous other members of the Suffolk County Police Department have been indicted, and have pled guilty to crimes committed against Loeb in connection with this incident, including others who testified at Loeb’s suppression hearing. Their identities have not yet been disclosed, and their files are currently sealed because the investigation is still ongoing.”
The motion does not reveal the source of that information. There were no other details on the cases.
A special prosecutor, William Ferris of Islandia, will handle the motion because of Burke’s close ties to Suffolk District Attorney Thomas Spota, which date to when Burke was a teenage witness against four defendants in the notorious 1979 murder of 13-year-old John Pius. Ferris said he had just received Barket’s motion and needs time to consider the arguments.
His reply to Barket’s motion is due Jan. 6.
Burke’s Manhattan-based attorney, John Meringolo, said he was unaware of the filing and he declined to comment.
With Robert E. Kessler

LILOEB1222

‘Numerous’ cops pleaded guilty in James Burke cover-up, court papers say 

Court papers: Cops pleaded guilty in Burke case

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Former Suffolk police chief James Burke has filed a notice of appeal of his 46-month prison sentence for beating a heroin addict who stole a duffel bag from his police-issued SUV and orchestrating an elaborate cover-up, according to court papers. 
The notice — a first step in an appeal — was filed Tuesday in U.S. District Court in Central Islip by John Meringolo, Burke’s Manhattan-based attorney. 
The former chief pleaded guilty in February to obstruction of justice and violating the civil rights of Christopher Loeb, the heroin addict who broke into Burke’s SUV and stole a bag containing pornography, sex toys and the chief’s ammunition belt. Burke subsequently assaulted Loeb inside the Fourth Precinct in Smithtown on Dec. 12, 2012. 
The one-page notice does not provide any legal arguments and indicates that an appeal could be based on the sentence and not Burke’s conviction. 
Meringolo’s sentencing memorandum, filed with the court in late October, offers what could be a basis for an appeal. Meringolo argued against the court’s inclusion of a two-level enhancement to the federal sentencing guidelines on the obstruction of justice charge, which can be added if the crime is “extensive in scope.” 
He declined to comment Wednesday morning. 
Burke, 52, of St. James, faced 41 to 51 months in prison under the terms of a plea deal when he was sentenced to 46 months on Nov. 2. He would have faced a lower range of 37 to 46 months without the guideline enhancement. 
“While not minimizing the seriousness of the offense, there is nothing in the record of this matter that suggests Mr. Burke crafted a complex scheme to obstruct,” Meringolo wrote in the memo.
Nellin McIntosh, a spokeswoman for the U.S. attorney’s office for the Eastern District of New York, which prosecuted Burke, declined to comment on the notice of appeal. 
Under federal Bureau of Prison rules, Burke, who is incarcerated at the Metropolitan Detention Center in Brooklyn, can be credited for up to 15 percent of his sentence for good behavior. The 11 months Burke has spent in custody since his December arrest will be subtracted from his sentence, meaning Burke could be out of prison in about 28 months.
While prosecutors had pushed for Burke to receive the maximum sentence of 51 months, Meringolo had asked the judge not to impose any prison time, citing the illness of Burke’s mother, Frances, and what he called his client’s otherwise “extraordinary career history.”
U.S. District Judge Leonard Wexler, who imposed the sentence, said Burke acted “as a dictator” in his role as the highest-ranking uniformed officer in the department. 
“He corrupted a system, not on one act, but for three years,” the judge said at sentencing. 
In Burke’s pre-sentencing memorandum, federal prosecutors said his scheme included “the recruiting of high-ranking officials from other county agencies to assist him in the obstruction and to give teeth to his threats.” 
Newsday has reported that federal investigators are looking into whether Suffolk District Attorney Thomas Spota and one of his chief assistants, Christopher McPartland, participated in the cover-up. 
The memo added: “SCPD members who witnessed the assault came under direct and extreme pressure from the defendants and others to conceal it.”
Spota, who met Burke as a teenage star witness in a murder trial, ultimately made Burke his chief investigator before Burke was named chief of department in the Suffolk County Police Department. 
Spota has consistently declined to comment on the allegations.

LIBURK1117

James Burke, ex-Suffolk Police Chief, appealing prison sentence

Ex-Police Chief James Burke appealing 46-month sentence

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Robert E. Kessler

Former Suffolk police chief James Burke was sentenced to 46 months in prison Wednesday for beating a man who stole a duffel bag from his police-issued vehicle and orchestrating an elaborate scheme to conceal the crime.
Burke acted “as a dictator” in a cover-up conspiracy that “affected a whole police department,” U.S. District Judge Leonard Wexler said in imposing the sentence.
“He corrupted a system, not on one act, but for three years,” Wexler said. 
Addressing the judge in federal court in Central Islip, Burke called his actions “a calamitous misdeed” and apologized to the victim, Christopher Loeb, the police department and his own family, “particularly my mother.”
Loeb, who is serving time for a parole violation, locked eyes with Burke in the courtroom while making his victim impact statement.
“I thought you were untouchable,” the Smithtown man told Burke. “Now look at us both, we are both incarcerated. The difference, besides the fact that my sentence is about to end and yours is only beginning, is that my actions reflected only me. ... Your crimes revealed deep problems in the entire Suffolk County law enforcement community.”
The case started in December 2012, when Loeb, then 26, broke into Burke’s departmental sport utility vehicle and stole the duffel bag, finding a gun-belt, magazines of ammunition, a box of cigars, sex toys and pornography, prosecutors said.
Federal prosecutors said in a pre-sentencing memorandum that Burke’s obstruction scheme included “the recruiting of high-ranking officials from other county agencies to assist him in the obstruction and to give teeth to his threats.”
“SCPD members who witnessed the assault came under direct and extreme pressure from the defendants and others to conceal it,” prosecutors said.
Burke, 52, of St. James, faced 41 to 51 months in prison under the terms of a plea deal. 
He pleaded guilty in February to obstruction of justice and violating the victim’s civil rights after a probe by special investigators reporting directly to Eastern District U.S. Attorney Robert Capers and FBI agents.
The 11 months Burke has spent in a federal detention center since his December arrest will be subtracted from his sentence. In addition, federal prisoners can get up to 15 percent off for good behavior. That means Burke could be out in 28 months.
Burke, formerly Suffolk’s highest-ranking uniformed officer, served as chief of department from January 2012 until his resignation in November 2015.
He appeared in court Wednesday in tan prison clothes and without his signature mustache.
Burke apologized both to “the citizens of Suffolk County” and “the men and women of the Suffolk County Police Department.”
“It is my sincere desire that with this sentencing the focus can be on the great deeds and heroic actions that they perform every day and on every tour of duty,” he said.
Burke had sought to avoid time behind bars in order to care for his mother, who is seriously ill with cancer — an appeal for leniency that Loeb attacked.
“If you had been thinking about your mother when you had me chained to the floor, maybe you would not have had your officers threaten to rape mine, maybe you would not have assaulted me, and then maybe none of us would be in this courtroom today,” he said.
“I am not perfect,” he added, “ ... but the punishment for someone accused of petty thefts should never entail a vicious beating by the chief of police. ... What you did shook the foundation of an entire police department and the district attorney’s office, who I believe helped you get away with crimes, at least for a short period of time.”
Burke was a longtime protégé of Suffolk District Attorney Thomas Spota. Before he was named chief, Burke headed Spota’s detective unit.
Newsday reported in June that federal investigators are probing whether Spota and one of his chief assistants, Christopher McPartland, took part in the cover up of the assault on Loeb.
Spota has said he did nothing wrong in the Loeb case, and McPartland and his attorney have declined to comment.
A spokesman for the district’s attorney’s office did not return phone calls seeking comment Wednesday. Spota also could not be reached. 
In addition to the 46-month sentence, Burke was sentenced to three years of supervised release.
“My client is going to do his time like a man, and he’s going to come out and be a productive member of society,” said Burke’s attorney, John Meringolo, of Manhattan, after the sentencing.
Meringolo had asked the judge not to impose any jail sentence, citing the illness of Burke’s mother, Frances, whom Burke cares for, and for what he has said is his client’s otherwise “extraordinary career history.”
Prosecutors Lara Treinis Gatz and John Durham urged the judge to sentence Burke to the maximum — 51 months.
“Isn’t conduct the best proof of character? Not how a person acts on his best day, but how a person acts on his worst day,” Treinis Gatz said in court. “On Mr. Burke’s worst day ... he hurt Mr. Loeb and the law enforcement community as whole, irrevocably.”
Eastern District U.S. Attorney Robert Capers was among those who attended the sentencing in a courtroom that was packed to overflowing, as was an adjoining courtroom to which the proceedings were piped into.
In a statement, Capers said Burke “considered himself untouchable. He abused his authority by brazenly assaulting a handcuffed prisoner, he pressured subordinates to lie to cover up his criminal acts, and he attempted to thwart the civil rights investigation into his conduct.”
Capers said the sentence delivered a message that “no one is above the law, and that the consequences for such egregious behavior are severe.”
Suffolk Police Commissioner Timothy Sini stressed afterward that the Burke case is not a reflection of the department as a whole these days. “I have often been humbled by the professionalism and bravery of our officers,” Sini said.
More than 80 people wrote letters to the judge asking for leniency, saying the former chief’s entire career should be taken into account.
Wexler said he read the letters but wasn’t swayed.
“I feel Mr. Burke was acting as a dictator,” he said. “How do dictators operate? If you are good to them, they are good to you, all these people — and I believe them, I believe every letter that was sent on his behalf. He did something good for them. But he also did bad if you were not on his side. 
“That’s corruption.”

LIBURK1103

Ex-Suffolk police chief James Burke gets 46 months in prison

Burke gets 46 months, judge says he 'corrupted system'

Ex-SCPD chief James Burke sentenced to 46 months

Even before former Suffolk County Police Chief James Burke was ever convicted of a crime, Robert Capers, the U.S. attorney for the Eastern District, argued in an eight-page memo to a federal judge that Burke was too dangerous to be granted bail. Capers won the day, and Burke has been sitting in a jail cell since his arrest 11 months ago.
Seen in that light, Burke’s request that he be spared prison time at his sentencing Wednesday so he can help take care of his ailing mother is untenable. Burke used the power of his badge to commit terrible crimes. He pleaded guilty to beating a man in 2012 who stole a duffel bag from his department-issued SUV, and to masterminding a complex cover-up of his actions that included persuading other officers to lie for him. 
Burke’s reign over the Suffolk County Police Department has cast doubt on the integrity and judgment of Suffolk County District Attorney Thomas Spota, Burke’s longtime boss and mentor, as well as on County Executive Steve Bellone and other powerful law-enforcement officials.
Newsday has reported that federal prosecutors have informed Christopher McPartland, Spota’s chief of investigations and a close friend and ally of Burke, that he’s the target of a federal probe. 
Bellone, who appointed Burke to run the force and then supported him for far too long after accusations were made against the chief, has publicly called for Spota’s resignation. Spota’s office also has come under fire for allegations of other misconduct, including an assistant district attorney’s rental of a party boat to criminal defense attorneys.
Burke’s lawyer made a plea for leniency on Friday, arguing that the former chief’s crimes were the exception in his “extraordinary career history in law enforcement.”
Federal prosecutors responded with a stern demand for 51 months in prison and made a far more compelling argument. To explain the terrifying career of this consistently corrupt cop, prosecutors pointed to Burke’s cover-up of a drunken-driving accident when he hit another car, his use of a GPS device to track movements of a high-ranking police official whom he disliked, and his twice losing his service weapon while he consorted with a felon. 
There’s one way Burke could make a decent argument for leniency, and it’s the one thing he has steadfastly refused to do: Explain the web of corruption that has infiltrated the most important institutions in Suffolk County.
As Burke climbed the law-enforcement ladder, he consistently showed himself to be ethically challenged, building a chunky internal affairs file that those in power chose to ignore. Burke eventually headed up the investigations unit in the district attorney’s office for a decade before being named Suffolk’s police chief. Bellone made that appointment before hiring the police commissioner who would oversee Burke, and ignored warnings that Burke was ill suited for the job.
Suffolk County has become a place where residents feel they cannot trust the most important institutions. That’s not all Burke’s fault, but he deserves to be harshly punished for what he did — and for being unwilling to explain what else has been done. — The editorial board

Opinion

Editorials

VPBURKE1102

How ex-Suffolk police chief could make case for leniency

Editorial: How ex-police chief could argue for leniency

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In a scathing rebuttal to former Suffolk police chief James Burke’s argument that he should not get any jail time, federal prosecutors filed a memorandum late Monday arguing that he should get the maximum under the terms of a plea bargain — 51 months in jail.
Burke’s request for leniency in a court filing on Friday and the prosecutors’ response comes shortly before he is scheduled to be sentenced Wednesday. Burke has pleaded guilty to beating in 2012 a Smithtown man, Christopher Loeb, who stole a duffel bag from the chief’s departmental SUV, and then masterminding a cover up of his actions.
The sentencing is scheduled before U.S. District Judge Leonard Wexler in Central Islip. Wexler has ordered Burke detained as a danger to the community pending the outcome of the case.
Burke in his plea for leniency made two main arguments: that there were “unique family circumstances” because he was the primary caregiver of his mother, Frances, with whom he lives and who is seriously ill with cancer, and that his criminal actions were aberrant behavior in an “extraordinary career history” in law enforcement.
In their response, Eastern District prosecutors Lara Treinis Gatz and John Durham noted that Burke’s two brothers “are able to care for his mother and are doing so now, ” with one of the brothers living with his mother while Burke has been in jail. 
The “defendant’s mother has been suffering with the same health problems for many years, including during the period of time when the defendant committed the instant offenses,” the prosecutors wrote. “In all criminal cases, family members of incarcerated people suffer. It is an unintended and sad consequence of incarceration. It is also one of the risks a defendant assumes when he commits a crime. Simply stated, the defendant’s own conduct is what is preventing him from taking care of his mother . . . ”
As to Burke’s claim that his conduct in the Loeb case was an unusual, unprofessional act, the prosecutors strongly disagreed.
“Contrary to the defendant’s assertion, this is not the first time he violated the public trust and abused his authority as a member of the SCPD,” the prosecutors wrote.
The obstruction in the Loeb case “continued for almost three years” and included working out false statements with some officers to minimize Burke’s actions and intimidating others to get them to go along with the obstruction, the prosecutors said.
“During his career with the SCPD, the defendant was the subject of a number of internal affairs investigations, including a substantiated case in which he was found to have consorted with a convicted felon and failed to secure his service weapon on two occasions, resulting in the loss of those weapons,” the prosecutors said.
“Additionally, the defendant repeatedly abused his authority by having SCPD subordinates transport him and others to and from airports, conduct surveillance on his girlfriends and/or his girlfriends’ ex-significant others, and visit a girlfriend’s house when there was an issue with a handy-man.”
At one point Burke covered up an auto accident when he was driving under the influence and struck another car, causing extensive damage, the prosecutors said. Instead of reporting the incident, Burke and the driver of the other car left the scene and Burke paid out-of pocket to have the damaged car repaired, the prosecutors said.
Burke also took steps to gather information on those he considered enemies, the prosecutors said.
To gain potential blackmail information on a high-ranking civilian police department official who Burke disliked, Burke had a GPS device placed on the official’s car to trace movements, the prosecutors said. Sources have identified that official as Deputy Commissioner Risco Mention-Lewis.
Burke “regularly discussed his desire to seek retribution against a list of current and former SCPD personnel who he viewed as disloyal, and recruited others to assist him in these endeavors,” the prosecutors said.
“In sum, characterizing the events (the assault and cover-up) as aberrational or a momentary lapse in judgment is a gross and outrageous understatement,” Gatz and Durham said.
Burke’s attorney, John Meringolo of Manhattan, when asked for comment, said: “More than eighty people have written letters requesting leniency. These are the people who know Mr. Burke best personally and professionally. Their first-hand knowledge should be taken into account.”

LIBURK1101

Prosecutors recommend 51-month jail sentence for James Burke

Prosecutors urge 51 months in jail for Burke      

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Former Suffolk police chief James Burke has asked that he not be sent to prison so he can care for his 75-year-old mother who is seriously ill with cancer.
Burke faces up to 51 months in prison at his scheduled sentencing next week for violating the civil rights of a man by beating him and then engaging in a cover-up of the crime.
In a letter filed late Thursday in federal court in Central Islip, Burke expresses remorse and requests that U.S. District Judge Leonard Wexler allow him to go free so he can personally tend to his mother, Frances, with whom he lives. 
“As you know,” Burke said in the letter submitted by his lawyer, John Meringolo of Manhattan, “there are many collateral consequences associated with my sentencing . . . The greatest consequence involves my mother.
“She was a single mother,” he continued. “In 1999, at age 59, she was diagnosed with metastatic lung cancer. In what I considered the greatest quest of my life, I took control of her health care and was involved on a daily basis with her treatment. It is now 17 years later and she is now 75 years old. Her situation is nothing short of a medical miracle. She is presently undergoing immunotherapy, is confined to a wheelchair and requires oxygen 24 hours a day.
“It would be unbearable for me to be in prison as her condition deteriorated and she passes from this earth, severely restricted in my ability to communicate,” Burke said.
He began his letter by expressing remorse and stating, “I sincerely apologize to the victim” and to “the men and women of the Suffolk County Police Department” and “the citizens of Suffolk County.”
The charges grew out of a situation in which Burke admitted beating a Smithtown man, Christopher Loeb, who had broken into the chief’s departmental sport utility vehicle, stealing a duffel bag. Burke was arrested in December on the charges, more than a month after he had resigned from the department.
Nellin McIntosh, a spokeswoman for Eastern District federal prosecutors, declined to comment on the letter.
In addition to Burke’s appeal to the judge, Meringolo submitted 86 other letters supporting his client, from family members and friends, to community leaders and a number of police officers with whom he had worked.
Nick Amarr, the head of Suffolk Crime Stoppers, submitted a letter seeking leniency, although he said Friday: “I don’t agree with what he did.” 
Amarr said he wanted to explain the positive side of Burke’s long career, and stressed that the former chief’s relationship with his volunteer organization was always “professional.” Crime Stoppers works on joint projects with police and raises money to be offered as rewards to help solve crimes.
People with differing views of Burke’s career will likely be given a chance to address the judge before sentencing.
One of Burke’s critics, Suffolk Legis. Rob Trotta, said he plans to speak.
Trotta, a former Suffolk detective, was removed by then-chief Burke from an FBI anti-violence task force.
“Burke’s mother’s long-term illness is indeed tragic,” Trotta said Friday, “but where were his concerns for her when he was committing his crimes and orchestrating a cover-up?” 
Burke faces 41 to 51 months in prison when sentenced Wednesday under the terms of a plea deal in which he pleaded guilty to the two charges in February. The terms of the plea also call for Burke to serve three years of supervised release and pay a fine up to $250,000.
Burke had faced up to 20 years in prison.
He has been held in a federal detention center since his December 2015 arrest.

LIBURK1029

James Burke asks for no prison so he can care for ill mom

Burke asks for no prison so he can care for ill mom

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A federal judge has set Nov. 2 for the sentencing of former Suffolk County Police Chief James Burke on charges of a civil rights violation and obstruction of justice.
In addition, U.S. District Judge Leonard Wexler in Central Islip on Wednesday approved Burke’s request to replace his current attorney, Joseph Conway of Mineola, with John Meringolo of Manhattan.
Both Meringolo and Conway declined to comment.
Burke faces between 41 to 51 months in prison when sentenced under the terms of a plea deal in which he pleaded guilty to the two charges in February. The terms of the plea also call for Burke to serve three years of supervised release and pay a fine up to $250,000. The plea does not require him to cooperate with federal authorities continuing a political corruption investigation on Long Island.
If Burke had gone to trial and been convicted, he could have theoretically faced up to 20 years in prison.
Wexler could depart from the terms of the plea bargain, but judges rarely do so.
The charges grew out of a situation in which Burke admitted beating a Smithtown man, Christopher Loeb, who had broken into the chief’s departmental SUV and stolen a duffle bag.
Burke was arrested in December on the charges, more than a month after he had resigned from the department. 
He has been held in a federal detention center since his arrest as a danger to the community by Wexler, who after the hearing ordered him to be continued in confinement.
Burke had been scheduled to be sentenced to August, but attorneys requested a delay because of unspecified objections to a sentencing report by federal probation officers. Probation officers frequently give the judge a confidential report with a sentencing recommendation.

POBURK0922

Former Suffolk Police Chief James Burke sentencing date set 

Ex-Police Chief James Burke sentencing date set 

POBURK0922_WEB

Sentencing for former Suffolk police chief of department James Burke — scheduled for Thursday — has been delayed at the request of defense attorneys and federal prosecutors, according to court records.
Burke, who pleaded guilty in February to charges of violating the rights of a Smithtown man and then masterminding a cover up of the crime, faces up to 51 months in prison when he is sentenced.
Attorneys requested the delay from U.S. District Judge Leonard Wexler because of unspecified objections to the pre-sentence report filed by the federal probation department, the court records said. 
Probation officers traditionally give a report to the sentencing judge with recommendations for sentencing.
A request for the delay filed by one of Burke’s attorneys, Joseph Conway, of Mineola, said “the parties have submitted objections to the pre-sentencing report, and are currently awaiting for the Probation Department to file an addendum.”
Probation Department recommendations are usually sealed and it is not unusual for a federal sentencing to be delayed for a variety of reasons.
In granting the postponement, Wexler has not yet set a new date for sentencing, the court records said.
The charges against Burke grew out of an incident in which Burke acknowledged assaulting a Smithtown man, Christopher Loeb, who had broken into the then-chief’s department SUV and stole a duffle bag.
Burke resigned as chief more than a month before his arrest in December on the charges.
He has remained in a federal detention center since his arrest because Wexler considers him a danger to the community.

LIBURK0825

Sentencing for James Burke, former Suffolk top cop, delayed

Sentencing for ex-top cop Burke delayed

In December 2011, as the newly elected Steve Bellone prepared to take over as Suffolk County executive the next month, Bellone and his transition team received an anonymous letter with disturbing information about James Burke, the man he wanted to appoint as the new police chief.
The letter included specific allegations of misconduct and warned Bellone to bypass the ex-Suffolk County police officer and district attorney chief investigator: Burke “was known to frequent prostitutes” and “committed at least one armed home invasion” to retrieve a service weapon stolen from him by a prostitute. He interfered with an Internal Affairs investigation into an officer accused of assault. He used damaging information gleaned from a wiretap as leverage to control Bellone’s predecessor, Steve Levy. And he “threatens subordinates with forced transfers, and tells them he is untouchable and that they have no protection and that he will ruin their career forever.”
The letter, which was obtained by Newsday and has not been reported to the public until now, indicates it was written by “dedicated hard working members” of the Suffolk Police Department. Those officers did not want Bellone “to be embarrassed or caught up in a scandal over the dealings” of Burke.
Bellone, in an interview Tuesday, acknowledged that he received and read the letter in December 2011. The letter “seemed crazy to me, honestly,” Bellone said. “It didn’t seem believable to me.”
Despite the ominous warning, Bellone appointed Burke in January 2012 as Suffolk Police’s chief of department, where he commanded 2,400 sworn officers.
Burke held that position during a tumultuous four-year tenure beset by the type of scandal predicted by the author of the anonymous letter. Burke left office in October 2015, less than two months before federal investigators arrested him on charges stemming from his assault of Christopher Loeb, a Smithtown man who had stolen a duffel bag from Burke’s department vehicle.
Burke, 51, has since pleaded guilty to violating Loeb’s civil rights and to orchestrating a departmental cover-up of the crime. Under the terms of the plea deal, Burke will face anywhere from 3 years and 5 months to 4 years and 3 months in prison, a term that is within suggested federal sentencing guidelines for the crimes. Had he been convicted at trial, Burke could have faced up to 20 years.
Newsday has reported that the federal investigation has not ended with Burke and has extended to the district attorney’s office, where Burke worked for nearly a decade before becoming the top uniformed officer in the county.
Burke’s downfall, and the existence of the 2011 letter warning that his appointment would lead to scandal, raise questions about Bellone’s decision to select Burke and his failure to remove him amid mounting evidence that Burke was bringing disgrace to the department.
Bellone publicly supported Burke despite a 2013 Newsday report on a 1995 Internal Affairs investigation that Burke, while a police officer, had engaged in sexual relations with a prostitute in his patrol car. And Bellone continued to support Burke as Newsday published more than a dozen stories concerning the allegations of Burke’s assault of Loeb and the subsequent federal investigation.
Bellone, in the five months since his former police chief was arrested,&nbsp;has repeatedly declined Newsday’s attempts to interview him about Burke. Bellone agreed to talk on the record only after he was informed that the newspaper intended to publish a story about the 2011 anonymous letter.
<h3>Ties with Spota</h3>
Bellone said he brought the letter to Suffolk County District Attorney Thomas Spota, who had employed Burke since 2002 as his chief investigator. Spota and Burke’s relationship spans decades — Burke was 14 when Spota, as an assistant prosecutor, used Burke as his key witness to testify in the 1979 murder of 13-year-old John Pius, of Smithtown. 
“‘Absolutely not. It’s all B.S.,’” Bellone said Spota told him of the allegations against Burke in the letter. “He said, ‘We investigated all that stuff. It’s all B.S.’”
Spota mentioned that he had written his own letter refuting the allegations against Burke, Bellone said, and offered to send it to the incoming county executive to allay his concerns. Bellone said he accepted the offer but doesn’t recall whether Spota ever sent the letter to him.
“I don’t remember getting the letter,” Bellone said. “I don’t remember seeing the letter.”
Regardless, Bellone said he believed Spota and “that was the end of the issue.”
He said he never bothered to discuss the allegations with Burke because Spota had reassured him.
“No. I brought it directly to Spota,” Bellone said.
Bellone did not answer whether he felt misled by Spota.
He said he also relied on a recommendation from Suffolk County Democratic Party chairman Rich Schaffer, who originally introduced him to Burke.
Newsday has reported that Bellone and Schaffer — political allies who were once considered close friends — have been at odds for the past few years.
“He was being vouched for by the most credible people in our government and in our party,” Bellone said of Burke.
Spota did not respond to a request for an interview. His spokesman, Robert Clifford, flatly denied in an email sent to Newsday Thursday that Spota had reassured Bellone about Burke’s Internal Affairs file or vouched for his character. “The district attorney did no such thing,” Clifford wrote.
Clifford did not address whether Spota had seen or discussed the anonymous letter with Bellone but offered that Spota had never reviewed Burke’s Internal Affairs file: “Any claim to the contrary is entirely false.”
(Newsday reported in January that law-enforcement sources say Christopher McPartland, Spota’s division chief of investigations, requested Burke’s Internal Affairs files from police headquarters in December 2011, after Bellone had decided to appoint Burke. It’s unclear whether McPartland ever received the files, a source said, but his request would have occurred during the same month that Bellone received the anonymous letter.)
Schaffer said in an interview Thursday that shortly after Bellone was elected, Burke asked for an introduction to Bellone. Schaffer said he arranged the meeting but did so without telling Spota, who would have wanted Burke to remain in the district attorney’s office, Schaffer said.
“Steve met with [Burke] at his house for two or three hours,” Schaffer said.&nbsp;“Steve called me and said that he loved him and was very happy with him.”
Schaffer said he remembers seeing the anonymous letter but told Bellone that Burke was “a good guy.” He said he now regrets that he ever introduced Burke to Bellone.
“I’m very disappointed in what he [Burke] did and yeah, I’m sorry that I did introduce him because if all those things were true at the time, they should have been made public,” Schaffer said.
<h3>Internal Affairs probe</h3>
Less than two years after Bellone received the anonymous letter, Newsday published a story in October 2013 about the Internal Affairs probe into Burke’s sexual relationship with Lowrita Rickenbacker, a felon with a history of prostitution arrests.
The 1995 IA report, which Newsday made available online, found Burke guilty of conduct unbecoming an officer&nbsp;for twice failing to safeguard his weapon, engaging&nbsp;in sexual acts in police vehicles and having a sexual relationship with Rickenbacker, “a convicted felon known to be actively engaged in criminal conduct including the possession and sale of illegal drugs, prostitution and larceny.”
Bellone stood behind the embattled police chief, issuing a public statement that Burke “was promoted seven times under three administrations, oversaw investigations for District Attorney Spota, and he has also received 45 commendations for outstanding service.”
Bellone said Tuesday that he didn’t even realize that the Rickenbacker probe was the incident referred to in the anonymous letter.
“I didn’t connect the Rickenbacker story to that conversation I had with Tom Spota two years before, or that letter,” Bellone said. “The Rickenbacker story came out, and obviously no one was happy about it.”
Bellone said Burke “defended himself” when he asked him about the Internal Affairs report.
“He said he never pled to anything, that he never agreed to any of the charges. He was given a small penalty at the time, and he was done from there. And he had a successful career until the time I came in,” Bellone said. “So, despite the story not being a great story, it was still, you know, something that happened 20 years before. It didn’t reflect anything that was apparent to me in his career.”
The details of Burke’s past relationship with a prostitute came as federal authorities were investigating allegations that Burke had assaulted Loeb, the Smithtown man who stole a duffel bag from the chief’s department vehicle.
Bellone said Burke convinced him that the newspaper stories were simply an effort by disgruntled enemies to ruin his reputation and “drag him down.”
“The frame in which this was being put is that there were people out to get Burke and the DA and that it’s part of an effort to ruin his reputation from people in the department who were passed over” for promotions, Bellone said.
Bellone said Burke admitted he went to Loeb’s house and then to the precinct where Loeb was being held. But Burke said he never assaulted Loeb and only “congratulated the men” who arrested the person who stole the duffel bag from his SUV. Bellone said he believed Burke’s account.
Late last year, Bellone said he learned something that finally changed his opinion of Burke. He declined to explain what it was but said it had nothing to do with the federal investigation.
Bellone said he summoned Burke to his office on Oct. 27 and during that meeting Burke again lied to him about assaulting Loeb.
Later that day, Bellone told the public that he and Burke had “mutually agreed” that Burke should resign. In reality, Bellone said Burke tried to keep his job but Bellone fired him.
“I believed that he had lied to me about Loeb and he continued to deny it,” Bellone said. He said he fired Burke despite objections from officials within his administration who were concerned about making such a high- profile decision with the election only days away. Bellone was ultimately re-elected.
Bellone said he never imagined that appointing Burke — who had been highly recommended by lawyers, judges and the district attorney — would lead to federal investigations and one of the biggest scandals in the county’s history.
“I was impressed with him personally,” Bellone said. “His record, his resume, his vision for the department. And he was highly recommended by people that were very well-respected and trusted.”
The anonymous letter he received from strangers before taking office said otherwise. But the people whose advice he trusted told him to ignore the allegations because they were false, he said. 
“Clearly the information I received was inaccurate,”&nbsp;Bellone said.

INBELL0503

Steve Bellone was warned James Burke’s past would lead to scandal

Bellone: Burke did not resign, he was fired 

IMGLIY8_WEB

As an anonymous letter was being sent out to officials warning about allegations of misconduct against James Burke — who was being considered for Suffolk Police chief of department — District Attorney Thomas Spota wrote a letter in December 2011 defending the now-disgraced officer for his “outstanding leadership abilities” and calling the allegations about him “trash.”
Newsday has obtained a copy of the letter dated Dec. 12, 2011, in which Spota seeks to rebut, point by point, the allegations against Burke contained in an anonymous letter Newsday obtained last week, which states it was written by “dedicated hard working members” of the Suffolk Police Department. Those officers did not want incoming County Executive Steve Bellone “to be embarrassed or caught up in a scandal over the dealings” of Burke, the letter said.
Among other things, Spota’s letter rebuts allegations that Burke interfered with an Internal Affairs investigation into an officer accused of assault, that he attended parties with rampant drug use and that information gleaned from a wiretap was used as leverage to control former Suffolk County Executive Steve Levy. Of the allegations, the letter said, “It deserves emphasis and re-emphasis that not one shred of evidence has ever been brought forth to support any of this trash.”
Bellone said Spota mentioned he had written to vouch for Burke after Bellone, then county executive-elect, brought the anonymous warning about Burke to Spota. Bellone has said Spota offered to send the letter to him to allay his concerns. Bellone said he accepted the offer but doesn’t recall whether Spota ever sent the letter.
Neither Spota nor his spokesman returned several calls and emails on Thursday requesting comment on the letter.
On Wednesday, Spota told News 12 Long Island that he never reassured Bellone on Burke’s character. Spota also said he never looked at Burke’s Internal Affairs files.
He did say he vouched for Burke’s character in a letter sent to Long Island Association president and chief executive Kevin Law. 
When asked why he stood behind Burke, Spota said: “Well, unfortunately I thought he would be a good . . . I never, never, never thought that he would have done what he did.”
Burke, 51, has pleaded guilty to violating a suspect’s civil rights and orchestrating a departmental cover-up of the crime.
Bellone told Newsday Spota’s reassurance is the reason he never discussed the allegations with Burke, whom he appointed chief of department in January 2012 to command 2,400 sworn officers. 
“As disturbing as . . . [the Spota letter] is, it is far more disturbing that Tom Spota just yesterday claimed that he never vouched for Jim Burke,” Bellone said. “If I and the people of this county cannot trust the word of the DA, then we have a serious problem.”
In the letter, written on district attorney’s office letterhead, Spota lauds Burke, writing he had known him for many years and “entrusted him with overseeing law enforcement operations in my office for ten years. He is highly regarded in the law enforcement community by his subordinates and peers alike. He is not afraid of recognizing problems and taking action to remedy them, including, as the writer opines, make big changes if necessary.”
The letter was addressed to Law. The DA’s office sent it to Suffolk Democratic Party chairman Richard Schaffer as an attachment to distribute to Bellone’s transition team, according to an email thread obtained by Newsday.
Law, who said he was appointed Dec. 6, 2011, to chair the search committee for Suffolk police commissioner and not the chief of department spot, said Thursday that he did not recall receiving the letter.
“I don’t know why that letter would have been sent to me. Not one person ever suggested or indicated or nominated Jim Burke as a candidate for commissioner,” Law said. “Again, I was not involved at all, one iota, one conversation, about the selection for chief of police.”
In the email thread, with the subject line “Burke letter” and dated Dec. 18, 2011, Schaffer tells Spota’s assistant that he can’t find the letter she sent him. “Can you send it again? (The one Tom wrote) Thanks.” The attachment is then forwarded to Regina Calcaterra, Jon Schneider and Antonio Martinez — members of Bellone’s transition team — and cc’d to Bellone.
Asked by Newsday last week about the Spota letter, Schaffer said he could not recall one being received. Instead, Schaffer said that he introduced Burke to Bellone after Bellone was elected and that he remembered seeing the anonymous letter containing allegations against Burke but told Bellone that Burke was “a good guy.”
When told Newsday obtained the Spota letter and the email thread, Schaffer responded:
“I don’t recall it all. If I did it and it’s real, it would be because Jimmy asked me to introduce him to Bellone and it may have been based on a conversation, and again I don’t know what Tom’s letter says,” Schaffer said. “It would be just because I was asked to . . . get further information on an applicant. So when Steve took over, a million people are calling over about various positions in county government and I’m referring them over to the transition team or Steve himself. No, and I don’t remember that email either. My role would be that somebody asked me to get that information or asked me to pass it along to somebody.”
Spota’s letter does not directly address allegations that a prostitute stole Burke’s service weapon and said the allegation that Burke had been caught up in a prostitution sting in New York City was a “baseless rumor.” Spota acknowledged Burke’s service weapon was stolen “among other things during the commission of a burglary at his residence in Ronkonkoma in the early 1990’s.”
Spota wrote that “the burglary was one amongst a series of burglaries involving forcible entry into residences. The firearm was subsequently recovered after a 911 call involving a bar fight at a licensed establishment. The serial number had been obliterated.”
No mention was made of a 1995 Internal Affairs report that found Burke guilty of conduct unbecoming an officer for twice failing to safeguard his weapon, engaging in sexual acts in police vehicles and having a sexual relationship with “a convicted felon known to be actively engaged in criminal conduct including the possession and sale of illegal drugs, prostitution and larceny.”
The letter cites promotions Burke received, noting Burke’s “scoring number one” on a captain’s test. The letter said some of the promotions were made by John Gallagher and Richard Dormer, two previous police commissioners.
“In 2006 I designated Mr. Burke the Chief Investigator of the Suffolk County District Attorney’s Office as a result of a vacancy when the then Chief Investigator, former Police Commissioner Robert Creighton retired,” wrote Spota. “My reason in designating him was because of his outstanding leadership abilities which he had displayed over the prior 4 years of my administration. I never once regretted this decision.”
The anonymous letter pointed to what many people have said about Burke: that he drew his power from his decades-old relationship with Spota. Burke was 14 when Spota, as an assistant prosecutor, used Burke as his key witness to testify in the 1979 murder of 13-year-old John Pius of Smithtown.
“No one can ever speak ill of Burke to Spota, it is a strong bond,” the letter said.
Burke was appointed chief of department the month after Spota’s letter.
In October 2015, Burke left the post less than two months before federal investigators arrested him on charges stemming from his assault of Christopher Loeb, a Smithtown man who had stolen a duffel bag from Burke’s department vehicle.
Bellone told the public that he and Burke had “mutually agreed” that Burke should resign. In reality, Bellone said Burke tried to keep his job, but Bellone fired him.
Burke has since pleaded guilty to violating Loeb’s civil rights and orchestrating a departmental cover-up of it. Under the terms of the plea deal, Burke will face from 3 years and 5 months to 4 years and 3 months in prison, a term that is within suggested federal sentencing guidelines for the crimes. Had he been convicted at trial, Burke could have faced up to 20 years. He has yet to be sentenced.
Newsday has reported that the federal investigation has not ended with Burke and has extended to the district attorney’s office, where Burke worked for nearly a decade before becoming the top uniformed officer in the county.

LISPOT0506

DA Thomas Spota wrote letter vouching for James Burke in 2011

DA backed Burke in ’11 letter, called allegations ‘trash’   

IMG22SL_WEB

At least three investigators with the Suffolk district attorney’s office have been subpoenaed as a federal investigation has expanded into whether county investigators and prosecutors engaged in federal civil rights violations by illegally using a wiretap, sources say. 
The subpoenas were issued by a federal grand jury in Central Islip that has been probing the use of a wiretap as a new part of its overall investigation into the possible illegal conduct of Suffolk law enforcement officials, the sources said.
The wiretap was placed in 2014 on the phone of then-Suffolk Det. John Oliva, with the approval of a state Supreme Court justice, because he was suspected of leaking information on a robbery case, the sources said. 
But the jury is probing whether the wiretap requested by the office of District Attorney Thomas Spota was actually aimed at obtaining details about the people Oliva was talking to and what types of information he was providing. Oliva was known to be close to federal agents and prosecutors, who had been investigating then-Suffolk Chief of Department James Burke, the sources said.
It can be a civil rights violation if a wiretap is used to obtain information that goes beyond the scope of what the judge approved. In addition, investigators are not supposed to record the parts of conversations that did not pertain to the wiretap’s original purpose.
The grand jury indicted Burke in December for allegedly beating a drug dealer who stole a duffel bag from the chief’s department SUV and then obstructing justice by masterminding a cover-up of the attack.
Burke, who is being held without bond, has pleaded not guilty. Federal prosecutors recently revealed that they have offered a plea deal to him. Joseph Conway of Mineola, Burke’s attorney, said they were examining the offer but anticipated going to trial.
Newsday reported last month that the grand jury also has sent a letter to Christopher McPartland, the head of the district attorney’s governmental corruption and public integrity unit, informing him that he is a target of the grand jury investigation. Sources have said that the grand jury was looking into whether McPartland was involved in obstruction of justice as an outgrowth of the Burke case.
A target letter is an indication that the grand jury suspects the recipient might be involved in wrongdoing and is designed to warn the person against self-incrimination by testifying. But the letter does not mean the grand jury is about to charge the person with a crime.
<h3>Pulled over officer’s car</h3>
The three investigators who were subpoenaed report to McPartland and were among those in the district attorney’s office involved in monitoring the wiretap on Oliva’s phone. Two of those investigators eventually pulled Oliva’s car over in 2014, confiscated his cellphone and unsuccessfully attempted to get him to accompany them to a confidential site where the district attorney’s office conducts sensitive investigations, the sources said.
Anthony La Pinta of Hauppauge, an attorney for Thomas Iacopelli, one of the two district attorney’s investigators involved in the Oliva car stop, declined to comment. Kevin Snover of North Babylon, an attorney for Paul Caroleo, the other investigator involved in both the wiretap monitoring and the Oliva stop, did not return calls for comment.
David Besso of Bay Shore, the attorney for the third subpoenaed investigator, declined to comment. The name of the third investigator could not immediately be confirmed. 
Robert Clifford, a spokesman for the Suffolk district attorney’s office, and Nellin McIntosh, a spokeswoman for the Office of the U.S. Attorney for the Eastern District, both declined to comment.
Spota has not been accused of any wrongdoing.
In successfully seeking to have Burke held without bail as a danger to the community, federal prosecutors alleged that Burke and an unnamed person failed to report an accident in which a drunken Burke smashed into a state car driven by the unnamed person. Sources have identified the other person as McPartland. 
McPartland’s attorney, former federal prosecutor Lawrence Krantz of Manhattan, did not return a request for comment on the subpoenas to investigators. He has previously declined to comment on his client’s receiving a target letter. 
The wiretap investigation ran for 17 weeks, the sources said. The length of time the wiretap went on and when it occurred raised the suspicion of federal investigators, the sources said.
It is unusual for law enforcement officials to devote that much staff and time to a single robbery, the sources noted, particularly when Suffolk was facing drug and gang problems, as well as homicides, and all the unsolved cases of the bodies found at Gilgo Beach.
Oliva was removed, along with another Suffolk detective, by Burke in 2012 from the FBI’s joint Long Island Gang Task Force in an action that caused something of a firestorm. Burke said at the time that the reason was to concentrate county anti-gang efforts on the local level, but critics asserted it was because Burke and Spota believed federal officials were hogging credit for gang cases.
<h3>All kinds of conversations</h3>
The wiretap picked up all kinds of conversations Oliva had, both professional and personal, including ones with a Newsday reporter, and many with federal prosecutors and FBI agents, whom Oliva had worked with on the task force, the sources said. Some of the conversations involved gossip about Burke’s alleged actions, they said.
Retired Suffolk Det. Sgt. Robert Doyle, the former head of the police’s Major Crime Bureau and an Oliva supporter, has said the district attorney’s wiretap was unusual.
“In 37 years in every investigative command, I never knew of a wiretap investigation into leaks,” Doyle said. “This was to expose the people who were talking negative about him [Burke].”
Eventually, Oliva acknowledged he had provided information to a Newsday reporter. Not about the robbery case — in which arrests had been made weeks before the wiretap even began — but information that he believed showed the department was downplaying gang violence after he had been removed from the task force, the sources said.
Oliva resigned from the police force in September 2014, pleaded guilty to the misdemeanor of official misconduct and received a conditional discharge.
“I am deeply troubled and saddened by the conduct of the defendant in this case, who acted without regard for the consequences of his behavior on the safety of his fellow officers, and on serious, pending criminal investigations,” Spota said on the day of Oliva’s plea.
Conviction for illegal use of a wiretap could amount to a federal civil rights violation. Criminal violation of civil rights can carry sentences of up to 10 years in prison; illegal wiretapping up to 5 years.

LIFEDS07

Sources: 3 in DA Thomas Spota's office subpoenaed in John Oliva wiretap

Sources: 3 in Spota's office subpoenaed in cop wiretap

LIFEDS07_WEB -- cropped

Federal prosecutors have offered ex-Suffolk Police Chief James Burke a plea deal that, sources said Tuesday, calls for a prison sentence of around 5 years.
Burke, the former top uniformed cop in the county, faces charges that he masterminded a cover-up after beating a handcuffed prisoner who had stolen a duffel bag from his department SUV. He has pleaded not guilty and remains held without bail. 
His attorney, Joseph Conway of Mineola, said the government offered a plea agreement Monday night.
“We are examining it, but as of now we are anticipating” going to trial, Conway said Tuesday. He declined to provide details of the offer.
In anticipation of possibly resolving the case before the start of trial, Eastern District Assistant U.S. Attorney Lara Treinis Gatz revealed in federal court in Central Islip that a plea offer had been made.
Treinis Gatz, who is trying the case with fellow prosecutor John Durham, declined to comment on the details of the offer after Tuesday’s status conference.
U.S. District Judge Leonard Wexler set Feb. 26 as the date for a new status conference to see if a plea deal had been worked out by then. Otherwise, Wexler said, jury selection in the trial would begin March 21.
Burke, wearing a jail-issued navy shirt and tan pants, appeared upbeat throughout the brief proceedings. He laughed as he chatted with Conway before the start of the hearing. His signature mustache, which he apparently shaved off after being jailed, was still missing.
Burke faces charges — depriving a person of civil rights and a conspiracy to obstruct justice — that usually call for a sentence of 5 to 5 1⁄2 years under federal sentencing guidelines. But, if Burke is convicted, and depending on the individual circumstances of the case, a judge could sentence Burke to up to 20 years.
One of those charges would be dropped as part of the plea deal, sources said.
An indictment unsealed Dec. 9, the day federal agents arrested Burke in the driveway of his St. James home, accuses him of beating a handcuffed prisoner, Christopher Loeb, and enlisting unnamed officers and others in a massive cover-up of the alleged assault.
Suffolk officers had arrested Loeb earlier in the day on Dec. 14, 2012, after, they said, he stole a duffel bag from Burke’s unlocked SUV parked in front of the 29-year department veteran’s home.
In December 2015, Burke was first ordered held without bail as a danger to the community, after federal prosecutors said he still maintained considerable influence over the department. 
They had argued that several police union officials and others in the department, though never charged, were engaged in the alleged cover-up and continued to support Burke even while he was under investigation. No co-conspirators were named in court papers.
Further, the prosecutors argued that fear of Burke still pervaded parts of the department.

LIBURK03

James Burke, ex-Suffolk police chief, offered plea deal of about 5 years, sources say

Sources: Burke offered plea deal of about 5 years

LIBURK03_WEB

The criminal charges against James Burke, Suffolk County’s former top uniformed police officer, threaten to cast a shadow over County Executive Steve Bellone’s second term in office and raise questions about Bellone’s vetting of Burke before he named him chief, according to criminal justice experts and others. 
Discussion about the effect on Bellone’s political future intensified after a federal judge made the unusual move of denying bail to Burke, who is charged with beating a suspect and orchestrating a cover-up of the assault within the police department. He has pleaded not guilty. 
“I thought chapters like this in the history of Suffolk police were over,” said Patrick Halpin, a former Democratic county executive who was elected in 1987 on a platform of professionalizing the police. 
“But this shakes the foundation of trust of law enforcement in Suffolk County,” he said. Bellone, a Democrat, “has got to get to the bottom of the problem,” Halpin said. 
Stanley Klein, a Long Island University political science professor and a Suffolk Republican committeeman, said, “Burke’s in trouble, so Bellone is in trouble. Bellone is the captain of the ship and when one of your deputies does something wrong, it’s your fault.” 
Administration officials and other supporters downplayed any impact on Bellone, noting that he has moved swiftly to appoint a new police commissioner and chief of department after Burke resigned. 
“We don’t give a damn about politics,” said Justin Meyers, Bellone’s spokesman. “The only thing we are focused on is moving this department forward.” 
Rich Schaffer, Suffolk Democratic chairman, said he was “100 percent certain it doesn’t affect Bellone.” 
Some Suffolk County lawmakers and law enforcement experts questioned whether Bellone investigated Burke properly before announcing his appointment in 2011. 
A 1995 police internal affairs report said Burke, as a patrol officer, twice lost his police-issued service weapon at the same time that he carried on a sexual relationship with a woman who had a criminal record. 
Samuel Walker, a retired professor of criminal law at the University of Nebraska-Omaha and a police accountability expert, said Bellone’s appointment of Burke despite his internal affairs record could cast “a cloud” over his second term as county executive. Newsday described the internal affairs report to Walker and several other outside experts. 
“For this level of appointment there should have been a thorough vetting,” Walker said. 
“If you have a political tradition of this kind of favoritism and of cover-ups, then this case is an indictment of that whole system,” Walker said. 
Sources close to the matter said Suffolk County District Attorney Thomas J. Spota had recommended Burke for police chief of department. Spota did not respond to a request for comment. 
Schaffer said he also supported the Burke appointment. He said he was unaware of the internal affairs investigation when he recommended Burke to Bellone. But after the report was published in Newsday, Schaffer stood by Burke. “I believed in the work he was doing in the department,” he said. Even now, Schaffer said he’d “reserve judgment” on whether hiring Burke was a mistake until the case is resolved. 
Meyers said that at the time Bellone considered Burke’s appointment, Burke “had been promoted through the department seven times under . . . [three] county executives and he came highly recommended by the DA’s office, where he had been head of all the detective investigators.” 
Meyers said the administration was “not aware of the internal affairs investigation report when we made our decision, which was based on information and recommendations we received at the time.” 
Asked if the police commissioner or Spota should have made Bellone aware of that information, Meyers responded, “I’d say the circumstances were certainly unfortunate and extremely disappointing.” 
Charged in beating, cover-up 
Federal prosecutors have charged Burke with beating Christopher Loeb, who had stolen a duffel bag from Burke’s department-issued SUV, as Loeb was handcuffed to the floor in a police precinct in December 2012. 
According to the charges, Burke then orchestrated a wide-ranging cover-up of the alleged beating. 
Bellone, who was re-elected last month, named Burke as chief of department shortly after winning the county executive election in 2011. 
Bellone stood by Burke after reports of the alleged beating of Loeb surfaced in 2013. 
That October, Bellone said in a statement that Burke was named Cop of the Year in 1997, was promoted seven times under three administrations and had served as chief investigator in Spota’s office. 
“Based on the entirety of his accomplishments over 27 years in law enforcement, James Burke earned the position of chief of department . . . ,” Bellone said at the time. 
Doug Muzzio, a political science professor at Baruch College in Manhattan, said the episode begs the question of, “What did he [Bellone] know, when did he know it, and how quickly did he act once he knew something?” 
“In this case the buck stops with the county executive, and on its face it appears the county executive did not do his due diligence,” Muzzio said. 
David Harris, a law professor at the University of Pittsburgh who specializes in police conduct issues, said Bellone’s appointment of Burke, despite the 1995 internal affairs report, points to a “breakdown in the vetting process.” 
Harris said that “in a situation like this, when that knowledge was out there, if he [Bellone] did not know, it’s fair to say he should have known. 
“If he says he didn’t know, that’s not an acceptable full answer. Why didn’t you?” Harris said. 
“The executive who appoints the chief is ultimately responsible for how things go under that chief of police — if they go well, everyone takes the credit,” Harris said. “If they don’t go well, the executive will have to take the heat, as we’re seeing with Rahm Emanuel in Chicago.” 
Emanuel, Chicago’s Democratic mayor, has faced calls to resign after the release of a video showing a Chicago police officer fatally shooting a teenager. 
Chicago Police Superintendent Garry McCarthy resigned at Emanuel’s request amid the public outcry over the video. Protesters and other critics say Emanuel’s administration withheld the video from the public for more than a year, until after his re-election in April. 
Kenneth Sherrill, a professor emeritus of political science at Hunter College, said the Burke case may pose an “obstacle” to Bellone if he decides to run for higher office. 
Bellone’s name was floated as a possible running mate for Gov. Andrew M. Cuomo in the 2014 gubernatorial race. Cuomo picked former Rep. Kathy Hochul of Buffalo as his candidate for lieutenant governor. 
“If he aspired to higher office, it’s the kind of thing that any opponent for the Democratic nomination won’t let the voters forget,” Sherrill said. 
Eyes on police department 
Sherrill said a key question is whether Bellone can turn the police department around. Bellone recently named Timothy Sini, a former federal prosecutor and aide to Bellone, as police commissioner. Stuart Cameron was appointed chief of department. 
“With three years left before the next election, he might be in a position to take credit for cleaning up a mess, even if he helped to make the mess,” Sherrill said. 
Gerald Benjamin, a political scientist at the State University of New York at New Paltz, said the timing of Burke’s arrest, about a month after the county elections, works in Bellone’s favor because “there are four years for voters to forget.” 
Bellone backers note that former Suffolk County Executive Steve Levy in 2004 also faced potential fallout when two close allies, former county Legis. Wayne Prospect and Levy campaign aide Steve Baranello, were brought down on corruption charges. 
Levy was never implicated and ran for re-election unopposed four years later, backed by the major and minor political parties. 
Nonetheless, some Bellone supporters worry that the county executive has not responded forcefully enough to distance himself from the Burke case. 
“There are a lot of questions,” said Suffolk Legis. Jay Schneiderman (I-Montauk), who caucuses with Democrats and who will become Southampton town supervisor next month. “And Bellone hasn’t said very much. . . . The rumors are flying all around.” 
Accountability questions 
Some critics in the legislature say the Burke case shows that Bellone had no control over what was going on in his own police department. 
“He doesn’t pay enough attention to things,” said Legis. Kate Browning (WF-Shirley), chairwoman of the legislature’s public safety committee. “He doesn’t seem able to multitask.” 
“It’s got to splash back on him,” said Legis. Kevin McCaffrey (R-Lindenhurst), the GOP caucus leader. “There’s going to be more to come.” 
“Up to now, when allegations have come up, no one comments, hoping it goes away,” said Legis. Robert Trotta (R-Fort Salonga), a former police detective who is highly critical of Burke. “This time it isn’t going away.” 
Roger L. Goldman, a St. Louis University law professor and a national expert on police misconduct, said the Burke episode highlights the need to give the state more power to discipline local law enforcement officers, so local political interests don’t interfere with the disciplinary process. 
Only six states — New York, California, Hawaii, Massachusetts, New Jersey and Rhode Island — do not professionally license police officers, Goldman said. Other states convene special panels to discipline and revoke the licenses of officers with records of misconduct, Goldman said. 
In New York, where many state lawmakers accept campaign contributions from police unions and often seek political endorsements from them, the legislature has rejected proposals aimed at increasing police oversight. 
A 2013 Newsday analysis found the state legislature rejected 50 bills to increase police oversight over a five-year period. 
Suffolk police union leaders have defended the existing disciplinary system, in which misconduct allegations are investigated locally and blocked from public view under state confidentiality laws, saying the setup compels officers to testify when called into Internal Affairs. 
Goldman argued that if the allegations against Burke cited in the 1995 report had come before an impartial state licensing panel, Burke may have been disciplined earlier in his career and perhaps not risen through the ranks. It is not clear how or if Burke was disciplined. 
“You cannot leave these decisions, be it the police chief or the patrolman, to the local officials,” Goldman said. 
With Robert Brodsky, Yancey Roy and David Schwartz

POBELL13

James Burke case raises questions for Steve Bellone, experts say

Burke case may affect Bellone, experts say

POBELL13_9RE_WEB

Here’s the thing about Republican lawmakers’ vociferous call Tuesday for the federal government to monitor Suffolk’s police department: It looks like the feds, aggressively, have been doing just that.
James Burke, the department’s former top-ranking uniformed member, is under arrest in a federal detention facility as a result of U.S. Justice Department allegations. He’s pleaded not guilty to charges of impeding a federal investigation and violating the civil rights of a suspect by allegedly assaulting him in the Fourth Precinct — which is in the same county complex as the legislative building where Republicans held their news conference.
Burke was ordered held without bail after prosecutors enumerated a series of other disturbing allegations — for which Burke has not been charged — in a letter to U.S. District Judge Leonard Wexler.
In denying bail, Wexler drew a direct line between alleged actions of the highly decorated Burke and operation of one of the largest suburban police departments in the United States. 
“I find the corruption of an entire department by this defendant is shocking,” Wexler said after listening to federal prosecutors. “A man who has taken every oath taken, who has made pledges and has a responsibility, has violated every one of them.”
“Based on his past performance, there is no set of circumstances concerning bail that I can honestly trust him to fulfill and there is no way he can be supervised to the degree where he’s not a danger to the community,” Wexler said of a police chief recommended for his job by Suffolk District Attorney Thomas Spota, and supported and kept in place by County Executive Steve Bellone for 2 1⁄2 years after allegations of the assault first surfaced.
As GOP lawmakers pointed out, it took the federal government to dig out and make a case against Burke, after earlier inquiries by federal authorities and a Queens prosecutor. As a result of the latest federal probe, reignited and still ongoing after some witnesses changed their statements, there has been a spate of resignations from the department.
And the public — no thanks to the county executive, or lawmakers for that matter — is learning from the efforts of federal prosecutors about how various orders to cover up Burke’s alleged actions were slammed down the chain of command, reaching even into the federal government itself.
As Newsday’s Robert Kessler reported this week, the federal government, as part of the Burke investigation, isolated and then removed two detectives from a joint task force who allegedly had been ordered — and refused — to spy and funnel back information on Burke.
This is a major scandal. And it seems to be growing. And no, it doesn’t matter that Bellone’s pick for the department’s next commissioner — another political ally, Timothy Sini — is a former federal prosecutor who once worked for U.S. attorney for the Southern District of New York, Preet Bharara.
Sini is rebuilding the strained working relationship between Suffolk and the federal government, even as he makes changes in the police department. But his efforts — and political maneuvering between Republicans and Democrats on the county legislature — won’t stop an ongoing federal investigation.
And as for that federal monitor? The U.S. Justice Department doesn’t need a request. Should its investigation determine such a need, formal federal monitoring will follow — whether Suffolk wants it or not.

LIJOYE17

James Burke case shows aggressive federal scrutiny 

Brown: Federal monitoring already ongoing in Suffolk

LIBURK12_WEB

The arrest of former Suffolk police Chief of Department James Burke Wednesday spurred disappointment and concern for the future of law enforcement in the county.
Whether attorneys and officials supported or reviled Burke, many said the case would have some effect on District Attorney Thomas Spota, who has nurtured and promoted Burke from the time Burke was 14 years old throughout his career.
“They are so tightly connected,” said defense attorney Christopher Brocato, a former prosecutor. “It certainly isn’t good for him.”
Brocato noted that Spota made Burke chief of the district attorney’s offices’ detective investigator, the job that was his springboard to becoming chief. Brocato faulted the office for being too close to police, generally.
“The district attorney’s office is supposed to vet the police department, and they don’t,” he said.
Spota declined through a spokesman to comment on the arrest of his protege.
Some were disappointed by the arrest and the swirl of rumors that accompanied it. In the halls of the criminal courthouse in Riverhead, attorneys traded rumors and speculation with each other. Whispered conversations ended in shrugs.
“It’s a sad day for Suffolk County law enforcement to see a person like Jimmie Burke being charged,” said defense attorney Steven Wilutis, a former chief of homicide for the district attorney’s office. He recalled a young Burke “running around on the fourth floor” of the courthouse when he was a teenager, testifying during the infamous trials concerning the murder of John Pius Jr. Some of those cases were prosecuted by Spota.
“I’ve always respected him,” Wilutis said of Burke. “I thought he was a good law enforcement officer. It’s probably very demoralizing for Spota.”
Another former prosecutor, Craig McElwee, said it’s demoralizing for law enforcement countywide.
“The people who are in charge of law and order are being questioned about their dedication to law and order,” he said. “What they do now affects the direction of the county.”
For Spota, McElwee’s former boss, this is the time when the district attorney will reward people’s faith in him or lose it by how he handles the fallout from the arrest. “This is the turning point,” he said.
“Jimmie Burke’s his boy,” McElwee said of Spota. “He needs to come forward. He has to say something.”
County Legis. Robert Trotta (R-Smithtown), a former law enforcement officer and a vociferous Burke critic, said Burke’s arrest was a rebuke to Spota and County Executive Steve Bellone, who hired Burke as chief.
“Clearly, the district attorney is involved with him,” Trotta said of Burke. “He might be part of the problem, propping him up over the years.”
Sheriff Vincent DeMarco said Burke’s arrest was a stain on law enforcement.
“Ninety-nine percent of law enforcement officers possess integrity, honor and courage,” DeMarco said. “Unfortunately, Burke did not have those qualities. He had really serious character failures that should have been picked up earlier in his career.”
The arrest was a moment to take stock, DeMarco said.
“I think as elected officials, we all should look in the mirror and remember who we work for,” he said.
In time, however, he said he hoped the public’s confidence in law enforcement is restored.
Through a spokeswoman, Bellone said, “The Suffolk County Police Department is one of the nation’s finest law enforcement agencies and Suffolk County residents should have confidence in the work they do every day to keep our community safe. We have a strong leadership team in place that has the right mix of experience, integrity and professionalism to lead this department going forward.”
A police department spokesman said the department does not comment on ongoing investigations. The department, however, did not run this investigation.
Presiding Officer DuWayne Gregory (D-Amityville) cautioned that whatever Burke may have done should not reflect on the rest of the department or on the district attorney’s office.
“I hope people recognize the vast majority of the police department is law-abiding and dedicated,” he said. “In a department of that size, you’re always going to have a few bad apples.”Gregory acknowledged that Spota and Burke have been close friends for decades, but he said it’s not fair to suggest that Spota is tarnished by association.
He credited Bellone with quickly putting into place a leadership team at the police department that will work effectively with federal law enforcement.
With Tania Lopez

LIREAX10

James Burke’s arrest generates disappointment, concern in Suffolk

Burke’s arrest generates disappointment, concern

LIREAX10_WEB

James Burke, who ran the Suffolk County Police Department for almost four years and led investigators in the district attorney’s office for eight years before that, is too dangerous to be granted bail. 
The indictment of Burke, the swaggering, powerful insider who by all accounts was allowed to abuse his position as chief of department, is in its own way an indictment of the leadership of Suffolk County.
In asking a federal judge to keep Burke in jail, Robert Capers, the U.S. attorney for the Eastern District of New York, filed an extraordinary memo that says Burke created “a climate of fear to protect his interests.” Fearing indictment, the memo says, Burke “threatened to ‘take everyone’ down with him” by blackmailing SCPD members with information about their personal lives and families. The prosecutors said Burke’s deep connection to the county law enforcement establishment “insures his ability to continue to intimidate witnesses” while awaiting trial.
Burke, who was the department’s highest-ranking uniformed officer until he resigned in October, was charged Wednesday in a two-count indictment with abusing the civil rights of a suspect, Christopher Loeb, and forcing a detective he supervised lie about it to a federal grand jury that was investigating the allegations. However, threatening to kill a suspect in chains at a police precinct and then pressuring officers he supervised to cover it up sounds routine for Burke. He has done what he wanted and gotten away with it for decades, first under the supervision of District Attorney Thomas Spota, his mentor, and then Suffolk County Executive Steve Bellone, who supported and protected Burke despite the stink of scandal that surrounded him.
The eight-page memo opposing bail is stunning. Here’s a sample: In 2011, Burke allegedly admitted that he was drunk when he crashed into a state-owned vehicle. Burke and the driver of the other car left the scene, allowing Burke to avoid prosecution, and he paid for the repairs to cover it up. Burke also allegedly spied on a civilian in the department he wanted gone by putting a GPS on the person’s car to blackmail the individual. 
The cover-up is always worse than the crime, and that’s what prosecutors claim in this case. According to the federal memo, it seems to involve the Suffolk Police Benevolent Association as well. A union official is said to have tried to scare police officers into silence because Burke and his allies allegedly were getting secret FBI files about the witnesses in Loeb’s case. The union official supposedly warned that Burke would soon know “who was talking, ” and later, the union told members it would pay their attorney fees “only as long as they did not admit to wrongdoing.” And union officials were present at their interviews. Those are mob tactics.
Now the dangerous Burke is in a cell in a Brooklyn detention center. And he might be even more dangerous if he cooperates with prosecutors. Bellone, Spota, departing police Commissioner Edward Webber, and commissioner nominee Timothy Sini, who supervised the department for 15 months as deputy county executive, should start talking, too. Tell the public what you knew or didn’t know, so we can decide whether you deserve to keep your jobs.
Meanwhile, this frightening lack of institutional oversight of the SCPD at the highest levels calls out for a federal monitor to get control over the department, because those who have it now aren’t doing very well.

VPBURKE10

Indictment of James Burke tarnishes  Suffolk County

Editorial: Burke indictment tars Bellone’s leadership

VPBURKE10_WEB

Dan Janison

The arrest this week of former Suffolk Police Chief James Burke reinforces the county’s unsung status as the land of legal and government mysteries.
The federal charges are fairly clear in detailing Burke’s alleged abuse of an admitted thief who had burglarized Burke’s car. So is the charismatic lawman’s denial of guilt. 
But it remains to be explained how disciplinary issues raised decades ago, including personal closeness to a known criminal, were overcome to enable Burke, a protégé of District Attorney Thomas Spota, to rise in the ranks.
Other Suffolk cases have spawned deeper mysteries. 
Nearly five years have passed since the sudden announcement that County Executive Steve Levy wouldn’t seek re-election, and would forfeit his $4.1 million campaign fund in a deal with Spota. 
Nobody ever revealed exactly what the man did or admitted to doing. Neither has Levy. All the public really has heard to this day is that the probe purportedly had to do with the campaign money. Levy had won a second term unopposed, then switched parties and ran for governor in 2010. 
Then, whoosh. He was gone. 
Spota said at the time: “While the investigation revealed serious issues with regard to fundraising and the manner in which it was conducted, including the use of public resources, I am confident that Mr. Levy did not personally profit.”
Plea deals ordinarily result in specific admissions to specific charges. Here we have no charges, no court resolution — only shadows.
Then there was Suffolk authorities’ handling of a Nassau cop’s controversial shooting of an unarmed cabdriver in Huntington. Last year, a Suffolk grand jury expired without evident activity even as Nassau officials found the ex-officer committed four felonies during the bizarre episode. 
Spota spokesman Robert Clifford said nearly a year ago: “At every turn we were thwarted in our attempt to move forward.” Basic questions linger. Maybe real answers will come from a civil case filed by the shooting victim.
The shooting of prominent Oheka Castle owner and Independence Party figure Gary Melius remains a puzzler nearly two years after the fact. Police said the would-be assassin’s gun jammed as he tried to fire a second round. Melius was shot in the head but survived. 
It occurred during daytime in a parking lot outside the catering hall. Despite videotape surveillance, a $100,000 reward offer, and identification of the getaway vehicle as an older-model Jeep Cherokee, the case appears to grow cold.
The biggest and most disturbing local riddle of all involves the grisly discovery, starting five years ago, of the remains of 11 people along Ocean Parkway. Investigators have theorized about a serial killer or killers targeting those associated with the sex trade.
For Suffolk’s various mysteries, one can only wonder how the answers will come and when.

Columnists

POJANI11

James Burke arrest marks  the latest  Suffolk mystery

Janison: Suffolk’s official puzzles are piling up 

POJANI11_WEB

James Burke, the former Suffolk County police chief of department, was arrested Wednesday on charges of assaulting a handcuffed suspect and conspiring to cover it up during a federal grand jury investigation, according to court documents.
Burke was arrested in the driveway of his St. James home at dawn, handcuffed, and taken for booking following a probe by special criminal investigators reporting to the U.S. attorney’s office for the Eastern District and the FBI.
A federal judge remanded Burke, who resigned in October, to the Metropolitan Detention Center in Brooklyn to be held in protective custody.
Robert Capers, the Eastern District’s U.S. attorney, said at a news conference at the federal courthouse in Central Islip before the arraignment: “I wish to make clear no one is above the law . . . certainly not the highest-ranking uniformed officer in the Suffolk County Police Department.
A letter filed by Assistant U.S. Attorneys James Miskiewicz and Lara Treinis Gatz asking that Burke be kept in custody, argued that his actions went far beyond those charged in an indictment and showed that the former chief should be detained as a danger to the community, pending trial. 
In doing so, U.S. District Court Judge Leonard Wexler said he was concerned that the assertions in the bail letter were so prejudicial that they might impede Burke’s chances for a fair trial. Wexler granted an initial defense request to bar the public from attending a bail hearing Friday “in order to protect the rights of the defendant.”
Burke pleaded not guilty to the charges of one count of deprivation of civil rights and one count of conspiracy to commit obstruction of justice. 
Asked whether anyone else in Suffolk law enforcement is being investigated or will be indicted as a result of the Burke investigation, Capers said that the probe is continuing.
“Stay tuned,” he said.
The indictment accuses Burke of beating a handcuffed prisoner, Christopher Loeb, and then enlisting unnamed officers and others in a massive cover-up of the alleged assault.
Loeb, who is called John Doe in the indictment, had been arrested for stealing a duffel bag from Burke’s department SUV parked in front of the chief’s home early on Dec. 14, 2012.
Later on Dec. 14, Burke and other officers arrived at Loeb’s Smithtown home, retrieved the bag and took Loeb into custody. Loeb was then taken to the Fourth Precinct, where prosecutors say he was assaulted.
<h4>Alleged misuse of position</h4>
The bail letter said “Burke regaled a group of officers with his account of the assault, saying it reminded him of his ‘old days’ as a young police officer, and referred to detectives who were present during the assault of a defenseless prisoner as his ‘palace guards.’ ”
The indictment charges that Burke, “together with other members of the SCPD, met on multiple occasions to discuss John Doe’s assault allegations and agreed to conceal Burke’s role in the assault by, among other means, agreeing to provide false testimony under oath about the assault, and agreeing to provide false information and to withhold relevant information from the FBI and the federal grand jury investigating the assault.”
The letter also alleged that Burke asked police officers assigned to a federal task force to spy on whoever might be cooperating with federal prosecutors and agents on the case against him. 
It charges that he tampered with evidence, engaged in a cover-up of an automobile accident in which he had been intoxicated; had a retribution list of officers he considered disloyal and instituted a “climate of fear [in the department] to protect his interests.”
Before arraignment, Burke’s Mineola attorney Joseph Conway “vigorously” denied that “there was, is, ever has been a cover-up” or that his client had done anything untoward. Conway said Loeb, whom the attorney described as a two-time felon, made up the story of the assault.
Conway said he spoke to Burke on Wednesday.
“His spirits are high,” Conway said. “He looks forward to defending himself in court.”
Loeb pleaded guilty to the theft of the duffel bag and was sentenced to 3 years in prison. He was released in July.
“I’m glad justice is prevailing,” Loeb said in an interview Wednesday. “The truth is going to come out. I’m going all the way with this, and I’m cooperating with investigators all the way through . . . He deserves what he is getting. I’m not a choir boy, and what I did was wrong. I paid my dues and I did my time. I’m moving forward with my life.” 
Capers said that Burke and others pressured the detectives who witnessed the interview room assault “to conceal the event.”
Burke “shockingly” asked one detective to falsely testify under oath, Capers said at the news conference.
Asked whether the police department has an inherent culture that leads to such conduct, Capers said his office was investigating only criminal conduct. “We don’t investigate the culture of anybody,” he said.
Diego Rodriguez, the head of the FBI in New York, said: “Today, former Suffolk County Police Chief James Burke finds himself on the opposite ends of the very laws he was sworn to uphold. . . . We vow never to forget our obligation to remove from the criminal justice system those who don’t uphold the tenets of the legal system.”
Burke was Suffolk County chief investigator for District Attorney Thomas Spota for a decade before County Executive Steve Bellone named him chief of department.
A Suffolk police department spokesman said the department does not comment on ongoing investigations.
Suffolk PBA president Noel DiGerolamo and Suffolk Detective’s Association president Bill Plant did not return calls seeking comment.
Burke’s arrest and arraignment came nearly three years to the day after the alleged 2012 assault on Loeb and one day after a the grand jury indictment was handed down. 
The indictment says that Burke, “together with others, while acting under color of the laws of the United States, did knowingly and willfully deprive John Doe of a right and privilege secured and protected by the Constitution and laws of the United States,” referring to the right of due process, “which includes the right to be free from excessive force.”
The indictment also says that Burke, “together with others, did knowingly, intentionally and corruptly conspire to obstruct, influence and impede an official proceeding,” referring to the federal investigation.
<h4>Reactivated investigation</h4>
The grand jury that led to Burke’s arrest began hearing evidence and testimony in the late spring to look anew at the case. It replaced an initial grand jury that had investigated the case without bringing any charges and that had remained dormant since the beginning of 2014. A group of investigators who report directly to the US. attorney were added to assist the new grand jury in its work.
Each U.S. attorney has a handful of investigators, unattached to any other law enforcement agency, who work on special or sensitive assignments directly for him or her.
Newsday reported on the new grand jury probe in October.
Several dozen officers were present at Loeb’s home or the Fourth Precinct when Loeb alleged officers first beat him at home and then officers and Burke beat him at the precinct.
But apparently none of those officers provided sufficient information for any indictment by the first grand jury, sources said.
At least three officers have been identified by sources as now cooperating with the current grand jury. Their attorneys have declined to comment when contacted by Newsday. 
“There is no denying he was at the house. There is no denying he was at the precinct. But we do deny the fact that he violated Mr. Loeb’s civil rights,” said Conway, adding that Burke has voluntarily surrendered his personal weapons to authorities.
Loeb said in a hearing that the duffel bag contained sex toys and DVDs of “nasty porn,” although sources have said Loeb mistook adult pornography for child pornography. Loeb called Burke a “pervert” because he mistook it for child pornography during the questioning, which triggered the assault, according to court papers. 
Authorities have said it contained a department gun belt with ammunition, handcuffs, a whistle and a box of cigars.
At the hearing, Loeb testified first that when he was held in a room at the Fourth Precinct, two officers punched him in the face and ribs when he asked for a lawyer, and one of the officers said he would rape his mother.
That officer has denied making such a statement.
Later Loeb said, Burke walked into a room and ordered the officers there to leave.
Burke then closed the door, Loeb said, and grabbed his face with his left hand and squeezed it. Burke said: “Do you want to steal from me? Do you want to steal from me?” and punched him on the top of the head, Loeb said.
If convicted, Burke faces up to 5 to 5 1⁄2 years in prison under sentencing guidelines, prosecutors said.
With Tania Lopez, Chau Lam and Darran Simon

LIBURK10

James Burke, ex-Suffolk police chief, charged in assault, cover-up

Ex-chief jailed, charged in assault, cover-up  

Former Suffolk Chief James Burke arrested

Watch ex-Suffolk police chief's arrest

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James Burke indictment

Federal agents went to the St. James home of former Suffolk Chief of Department James Burke before dawn today to arrest him on charges that he abused his extraordinary power as the defacto head of the SCPD. 
Burke's request to surrender to authorities was denied by federal prosecutors, who made him do the humiliating perp walk in Central Islip. And the new U.S. attorney for the Eastern District, Robert Capers, was at the courthouse for the unsealing of Burke's two-count indictment. 
The former chief is charged with physically abusing a suspect who stole his gym bag, reportedly containing "nasty porn," and then arranging with his detectives to falsely testify before a federal grand jury investigating the case to cover up his involvement. 
The feds are sending a message, but to whom? 
This was featured in The Point, the editorial board’s daily newsletter that goes inside New York politics. <a href="http://newdsay.com/thepoint">Click here</a> to subscribe.

OPPOINT09

The FBI wanted to send a message with James Burke arrest

Ciolli: The FBI wanted a photo-op with Burke

OPPOINT09_WEB

A federal grand jury indicted James Burke, the former Suffolk County Police chief of department, Tuesday, several sources said. 
The grand jury had been investigating allegations that Burke and other police officers beat and then covered up the assault on a Smithtown man who stole a duffel bag from the chief’s department SUV.
Burke, of St. James, the highest-ranking uniformed officer on the force until he resigned in October, was scheduled to be arraigned Wednesday at the federal court in Central Islip, the sources said.
Top Justice Department officials in the area are scheduled to hold a news conference on the case Wednesday.
Burke’s attorney, Joseph Conway, of Mineola, said Tuesday night that he has not been contacted about surrendering his client. The Eastern District could not be reached for comment.
The exact charges Burke faces could not be determined immediately, but the grand jury was known to be questioning witnesses about the possibility that violations of civil rights occurred, as well as a subsequent cover-up of the attack, which would amount to obstruction of justice.
More than a dozen Suffolk police officers in 2012 were either at the Smithtown precinct or at the home of Christopher Loeb at the time the Smithtown man was detained. Loeb has said he was assaulted initially at his home by officers and subsequently at the precinct, where he was beaten by Burke and other officers.
None of those officers are believed to have been charged so far in the case, and several are believed to have been cooperating with federal investigators. 
The grand jury at the federal courthouse in Central Islip started in late spring to look into the case. The new grand jury had revived an investigation that had remained dormant since the beginning of 2014. 
Both grand jury investigations were triggered by the 2012 theft of Burke’s duffel bag. Newsday had reported the existence of the new grand jury probe last month.
Since those same questions were asked during the initial investigation without any charges being brought, it is believed that federal investigators have acquired new evidence, the sources said.
That evidence might include wiretapped information, several of the law enforcement officers involved changing their accounts of what occurred or both, the sources said.
Several of the sources have said that some officers are now cooperating with investigators. 
At least three officers have been identified by sources as cooperating with the grand jury. Their attorneys have declined to comment.
Federal investigators have focused their questioning of the Suffolk police almost solely on two different subjects: what happened at Loeb’s house and the precinct, and what was in Burke’s duffel bag, the sources said.
The duffel bag question centered on if it contained pornography, the sources said.
Suffolk police have said the duffel contained a department gun belt, ammunition, handcuffs, a whistle and a box of cigars.
Amy Marion, an attorney for Loeb, 29, has said that her client claims the duffel contained sex toys and DVDs of “nasty porn.” Marion, of Garden City, said Burke’s reason for going to the scene was to recover the duffel and that was the motivation for his being enraged enough to later beat her client in the precinct.
Loeb pleaded guilty to the 2012 theft of the duffel bag from a department SUV parked in front of then-Chief Burke’s St. James home.
Loeb also has filed a federal lawsuit against the county, Burke and other police officers, accusing them of violating his civil rights.

LIBURK09

James Burke, former Suffolk police chief of department, indicted, sources say

James Burke indicted in  federal probe, sources say  

IMGZ7MY_WEB

Suffolk’s newly appointed top uniformed officer said Tuesday that his top goals are restoring the department’s partnerships with federal agencies and focusing on homeland security. 
Stuart Cameron, 54, a 30-year veteran of the department, was officially named to the post on Nov. 12. Appointed Tuesday were Gerard Gigante, 51, a former deputy chief of patrol, who will replace retiring William Madigan as chief of detectives, and Robert Cassagne, 58, former assistant chief of patrol, who will replace Cameron as chief of support.
Both began their new positions Tuesday. John Meehan, 56, will remain as the department’s chief of patrol. 
“Picking the right people as division chiefs is extremely critical,” said Cameron before the new chiefs were announced. 
The shake-up in top brass comes at a time when the department is trying to recover from a scandal involving its former chief of department James Burke who, sources said, now faces a federal indictment. 
Burke left Oct. 27 after sources said federal officials relaunched a probe into allegations that he abused his power when a Smithtown man broke into his department-issued SUV in Dec. 2012. Madigan left the department shortly after Burke, as did two officers in the criminal intelligence unit who were also involved in the arrest. 
Cameron, a former chief of support services and assistant chief of patrol, was first appointed interim chief after Burke’s resignation.
“Despite what you may read, the department is a great department. It really is,” Cameron said. “We are going through some tough times right now but I think we’ll emerge stronger and better.” 
Suffolk County Executive Steve Bellone said in a statement yesterday that Cameron “represents the best of the Suffolk County Police department. Throughout his career, he has embodied integrity, leadership and intelligence.”
Among his top goals, Cameron said, is restoring the department’s partnerships with federal officials to reap the crime-fighting benefits of combining federal resources and the police department’s local knowledge. 
Federally run task forces also have the ability to investigate and prosecute under unique federal criminal and penal codes covering racketeering, drug conspiracy and firearms violations.
Under Burke, the department pulled out of several federal task forces including the Long Island Gang Task force. That departure caused a huge rift between the department’s former leadership and federal officials. 
“I think it doesn’t really matter to the taxpayers of Suffolk County who takes a bad guy off the street, whether it’s us or some other agency and I think that is part of being professional,” Cameron said. “All they really care about is criminals getting taken off the street. If someone else can make the arrest better and prosecute them easier or send them away for a longer period of time and get them off the streets, I’m all for that.”
Cameron acknowledged his experience in patrol has influenced him to set stepping up traffic enforcement as another top goal. 
“When my children leave my house, my greatest concern is that they’ll be involved in an automobile accident,” Cameron said. “People are very concerned about being involved in an active shooter event or a terrorist event. The reality of it is they are far more likely to be involved in, injured or killed in an automobile accident.”
At the same time, Cameron, who has top clearance to access federal law enforcement information, said counterterrorism enforcement will be a priority of his administration.
An expert in nuclear terrorism, Cameron helped enact New York’s Securing the Cities, a Department of Homeland Security funded program that equips Long Island and New York City police with radiation detectors.
“We developed procedures for something that law enforcement had never been involved with before,” Cameron said. “I never envisioned when I came on the job in 1985 that police officers would be carrying radiological detection equipment which is very common now.” 
Cameron said he reads up on each active shooter event, such as the recent shootings in San Bernardino, California, to see if existing training and procedures are adequate to handle them.
“By the same token, we’re also trying to anticipate tactics that have not been used to get out ahead of them. We don’t want to be completely reactionary. We want to be proactive to protect people.” 
Seven of the nine pages in his resume list specialized training he has had on how to detect and respond to terrorism of all kinds, including active shooters, biological and chemical threats and suicide bombers. 
Cameron also supervised personel during the TWA Flight 800 crash as a sergeant in 1996 and coordinated the multi-agency crime scene at Ocean Parkway that started after four women’s bodies were discovered in Gilgo Beach in 2011. That area was later found to be a dumping ground for 10 sets of remains. 
Cameron said he never thought his career would one day land him as the department’s chief and he vowed to be what he termed “a professional.”
“That means, that no matter who my boss is, no matter who the county executive is, who the police commissioner is, I always try to come to work and be a professional police officer,” he said. “I always try to give the taxpayers of Suffolk County an honest day’s work for an honest day’s pay.”

LISCPD09

Stuart Cameron, new Suffolk police chief, vows to improve relations with Feds, continue terrorism fight

New Suffolk chief wants better relations with feds

LISCPD09_WEB

Suffolk County Executive Steve Bellone's pick for police commissioner is a former federal prosecutor who says the department needs a top-to-bottom assessment to identify where improvements can be made. 
"There is so much good work being done," said Timothy Sini, a deputy county executive nominated Tuesday to replace retiring Police Commissioner Edward Webber. 
Sini, 35, Bellone's deputy commissioner of public safety, will begin his transition to the job Wednesday, working with Webber for the next two months, county spokesman Justin Meyers said.
But county lawmakers must still approve the appointment.
In a statement Tuesday, Bellone said Sini has the three traits he looks for in a police commissioner -- character, experience and vision. 
"Tim is a man of real integrity with a strong sense of justice," Bellone said. "[He] has a unique blend of law enforcement experience as a federal prosecutor combined with a keen understanding of Suffolk County's law enforcement community by serving as my top law enforcement adviser." 
Sini's former boss, Manhattan U.S. Attorney Preet Bharara, said in an emailed statement: "Tim Sini served with integrity and distinction."
But some county lawmakers had doubts about the choice.
Legis. Kate Browning (WFP-Shirley), chair of the public safety committee, said she sits on the board of the Suffolk County Criminal Justice Coordinating Council with Sini, who is the executive director. She described him as "very professional" and "very effective in his role." But she said he "is not the best choice," adding she mentioned this to Bellone on Monday moments after learning Webber was retiring.
"I felt that Tim was young," Browning said, adding she would back Sini as a deputy commissioner. "Many of our chiefs have been here more years than he's even been alive."
In an interview with Newsday in Melville, Sini, who grew up in West Islip, said he thinks being a newcomer is a strength. 
"I have a fresh perspective that I can bring," he said. "I know how to determine who I can rely on for advice, and I will display good judgment in surrounding myself with those who are competent, those who are trustworthy and those who are acting in the best interest of Suffolk." 
Browning plans to recommend going back to the 2012 search for commissioner. 
"There's a lot of questions I want answered before I can make a decision," said Legis. Robert Trotta (R-Fort Salonga), a former police officer. "I'm very concerned about his lack of experience and most importantly Bellone's decision-making process that he picked someone so quickly without interviewing other people." 
Sini, a $110,000-a-year assistant deputy county executive whom Bellone appointed deputy county executive in August 2014, ran this year for Suffolk County legislator and lost.
He said he played a "leading role" in getting the state to postpone indefinitely the second phase of new jail construction in Yaphank. "We have worked closely together to help save Suffolk County residents $300 million by avoiding the need for a new jail," said Sheriff Vincent DeMarco in an email.
Noel DiGerolamo, president of the Suffolk Police Benevolent Association, said he supports Bellone's choice. "I am confident that Tim will continue the Suffolk County Police Department's strong tradition of serving the community," he said in an email.
Bellone's announcement comes a day after Webber announced his plans to retire after more than three years at the helm -- and as federal prosecutors mount a case against former Chief of Department James Burke. Webber, a 43-year veteran, said he couldn't commit to serving another four years and wants to spend more time with his family.
Webber's announcement came nearly a month after Burke resigned as chief of department amid a reopened federal investigation into police conduct following the theft of Burke's duffel bag. Webber said his retirement was unrelated to Burke's departure. "If it was, I wouldn't be staying on for two months," he said Monday.

LISINI25

County Executive Steve Bellone picks former federal prosecutor Tim Sini for police commissioner

Incoming commissioner looking to bring fresh perspective to Suffolk police

David M. Schwartz

Suffolk County Police Commissioner Edward Webber announced his retirement Monday as the department faces a federal investigation of its former top uniformed officer.
Webber, a 43-year department veteran, will stay on until Jan. 25 to help with the transition, Suffolk County Executive Steve Bellone said in a statement.
Webber said he couldn't commit to serving another four years and wanted to spend time with his wife, three children and six grandchildren.
"As County Executive Bellone transitions to his second term, he needs department heads who are prepared to make a commitment to serve the next four years," Webber, 69, said in an interview.
Webber said Suffolk is on pace to end the year with the lowest number of homicides and burglaries in 25 years. He said he also is proud of the improved relationship between the police department and Hispanic and black communities.
Bellone said Webber served "with honor and distinction." The administration would not comment on who would replace Webber but said an announcement about the process would come soon.
Webber's announcement came a month after James Burke resigned as chief of department amid a reopened federal investigation into police conduct following the theft of Burke's duffel bag, Newsday has reported.
Webber said his retirement was unrelated to Burke's departure. "If it was, I wouldn't be staying on for two months," he said.
"We're a paramilitary organization. We've lost chiefs before. We've lost commissioners before. It's the natural progression of things -- when someone leaves, someone else takes his place," Webber said.
Critics of the department's leadership said the next commissioner needs to make significant changes, including working more closely with federal law enforcement agencies.
"We need a commissioner with some leadership skills to take control of the department and improve the relationship with federal law enforcement," said Legis. Robert Trotta (R-Fort Salonga).
Trotta is among several county lawmakers who have criticized reduced county involvement in federal anti-drug and gang task forces.
Said Legis. Kate Browning (WF-Shirley), chairwoman of the public safety committee: "I hope whoever they produce as police commissioner, there will be improved cooperation with the federal government."
Noel DiGerolamo, president of the Suffolk Police Benevolent Association, said Webber has "had a distinguished career . . . Any discussions of the ongoing investigation and retirement is a distraction to Ed Webber, an asset to the department. To be distracted by anything else is a disservice to him."
Tim Morris, president of the Suffolk Superior Officers Association, said that, "for the last four years he [Webber] and Chief Burke guided the department through some difficult times. They both did a great job."
Newsday has reported that a federal grand jury is probing whether any law enforcement official was observed striking Christopher Loeb and whether there was a subsequent cover-up of a possible assault. Loeb, an admitted heroin addict, broke into Burke's car parked at his Smithtown home and stole a duffel bag. Loeb has said he was beaten by Suffolk police officers and then by Burke himself after the bag was recovered.
Loeb has filed a federal lawsuit against the county, Burke and other police officers for violating his civil rights.
Bellone named Webber interim commissioner in 2012, at the start of his first term as county executive, and gave him the permanent position later that year. Bellone said he and Burke had stabilized what he once called a "dysfunctional" department.
While the chief of department reports to the commissioner, Burke often was the face of Suffolk police, leading news conferences on crime statistics and appearing with Bellone before hurricanes and major snowstorms.

POWEBB24

Edward Webber to retire as Suffolk police commissioner

Suffolk police commissioner to retire

Two Suffolk County criminal intelligence officers involved in the 2012 arrest of a Smithtown man convicted of taking a duffel bag out of former Police Chief James Burke's department-issued vehicle are leaving the force.
Det. Anthony Leto filed papers Nov. 5 with the state to retire after nearly 20 years working for the Suffolk police department. His last day is listed as Friday. Det. Kenneth Bombace's retirement was effective Sept. 26, according to the state comptroller's office. 
Burke, Suffolk's highest-ranking uniformed officer, resigned Oct. 27 as federal prosecutors in New York's Eastern District intensified a grand jury probe into the circumstances surrounding the December 2012 arrest of Christopher Loeb of Smithtown, sources familiar with the investigation have said.
Possible charges against Burke that the grand jury is considering are violations of Loeb's civil rights by law enforcement officers and obstruction of justice, the sources said. Burke has not been charged with any wrongdoing.
Loeb was arrested at his Smithtown home on Dec. 14, 2012, hours after he broke into Burke's department-issued vehicle and stole a duffel bag. In addition to handcuffs, cigars and other items, Burke's gun belt and high-capacity ammunition magazines were in the bag. Loeb has testified the bag also contained "nasty porn" and sex toys.
Loeb said he was beaten when he was arrested by other officers and Burke, who showed up at the scene of Loeb's arrest and later at the Fourth Precinct in Smithtown, where Loeb was taken. 
Loeb pleaded guilty in 2014 to third-degree criminal possession of a weapon and was sentenced to 3 years in prison. He was released in July after being credited for time served. 
Federal officials launched an investigation of Burke in 2013 to determine if he had violated Loeb's civil rights. In January 2014, a special state prosecutor appointed to handle the case because Burke previously spent a decade working for Suffolk District Attorney Thomas Spota filed a motion in state Supreme Court saying the case against Burke was closed. Federal authorities never confirmed that the investigation was closed.
Leto's retirement date, according to the state comptroller's office, is more than a month shy of the 20-year retirement mark with the Suffolk police. In addition, Leto worked for the New York City Police Department from April 1991 to December 1995, said Justin Meyers, a spokesman for Suffolk County Executive Steve Bellone.
The state has Leto credited for 24.5 years but that's an unaudited figure that can take weeks to confirm, according to the comptroller's office. A spokeswoman said overtime is one of the things calculated into the final credited number of years and could explain why the 24.5 years exceeds the number of years he served in the department.
Leto testified during Loeb's pretrial hearings Oct. 28, 2013, and briefly on Nov. 6, 2013, about his actions at the Fourth Precinct, the day Loeb was arrested and taken there.
Loeb testified that shortly after his arrest Leto choked him while he was chained to the floor at the Fourth Precinct facility and whispered he was going to rape his mother.
Bombace, who was not called to testify but was mentioned during court proceedings as one of the criminal intelligence officers involved in the case the day of Loeb's arrest, retired after more than 14 years working with Suffolk County Police Department.
During the Oct. 28 hearing, Leto testified that either Bombace or another criminal intelligence officer called him Dec. 14 to assist precinct police to canvass for witnesses, cameras and evidence after they received reports of "several break-ins into motor vehicles" near Burke's home.
He also testified that he, Bombace and another criminal intelligence officer debriefed Loeb in an interview room at the Fourth Precinct station house.
Loeb later testified that Leto and another plainclothes officer in blue jeans took turns "hitting me and I was choked." Loeb could not identify the second officer. 
Before he joined the Suffolk police, Bombace served seven years with the Suffolk County sheriff's department. He filed an application with the state Sept. 14 to transfer his time with the police department into his time as a sheriff's deputy and the request was approved by the state, according to a spokeswoman at the state comptroller's office. Such time transfers have been done before, the spokeswoman said.
Before his departure, Suffolk County signed an agreement with Detective's Association president Bill Plant promising lifetime health benefits and paid out sick leave to Bombace. Bombace heads a county police veterans organization, ran a marathon with County Executive Steve Bellone and served on his security detail.
Leto's and Bombace's retirements are the third known departures of officers involved in the Loeb arrest. Det. Thomas Cottingham, the lead detective handling the Loeb case, left the force in July 2013.

LILOEB14

2 more cops tied to Burke case retire from Suffolk force

poSUFF03 -crop / mg

Suffolk Legis. Robert Trotta has asked County Executive Steve Bellone to demote county police chief of department James Burke to captain before he officially retires Friday so the county can save $100,000 on his exit pay for unused sick and vacation time. 
“As Mr. Burke was appointed to the position of chief of police when Steve Bellone took office, it is only fitting the he be the one to issue the demotion,” said Trotta (R-Fort Salonga). Trotta conveyed his request to the county executive through Bellone aide Katie Horst. 
Trotta, a former Suffolk police detective, said the demotion would not affect Burke’s pension, which Trotta estimated at about $175,000 a year. But it would reduce Burke’s payout for unused time from $440,000 if he were to go out as chief of department to $330,000 if he departs as a captain. 
Trotta said the savings could be used to defend a lawsuit that has been filed against the county over Burke’s alleged conduct at the time of the arrest in December 2012 arrest of Christopher Loeb of Smithtown for stealing a duffel bag from Burke’s county-issued sport utility vehicle. 
In a surprise move, Burke resigned from his $214,000 a year job as chief of department late last month after federal officials reopened their probe into the incident. Prosecutors have issued subpoenas for police union records and for officers to appear before a grand jury. 
Deputy County Executive Jon Schneider said he did not expect Bellone to take any action on Trotta’s request, saying Burke’s retirement papers have already been filed and that he leaves at the end of the week. 
“Clearly, this has nothing to do with saving taxpayer dollars,” Schneider said of Trotta’s request. “It sounds like a personal vendetta and it’s an unseemly way for an elected official to use their public office.” 
Schneider said Trotta’s request “would have significantly more credibility” if he were not receiving a $93,700-a-year pension himself plus a six-figure legislative salary.

Politics

Trotta presses for Burke demotion

Suffolk District Attorney Thomas Spota, a long time mentor of Suffolk Police chief of department James Burke, gave a belated reaction to his protege’s sudden decision to retire in light of a renewed federal probe into conduct related the theft of the chief’s duffel bag and his treatment of the suspect. 
“I’m saddened by it,” said Spota. “He’s a great friend and a terrific chief of the department and everyone I’ve spoken to in the department is saddened by his resignation.”

Saddened

Suffolk: Spota 'saddened' by Chief Burke's departure under probe

Spota

County Executive Steve Bellone built the leadership of Suffolk's police department around one man, James Burke, who on Monday announced that he would step down as chief of department.
Burke's decision -- which Bellone, in an interview yesterday, said had been mutual -- came once Bellone learned that Burke was again under federal investigation in connection with allegations that he punched a suspect who had stolen a duffel bag from Burke's department-issued vehicle.
The first federal investigation into an abuse complaint against Burke by Christopher Loeb of Smithtown started in June 2013. Back then, Bellone stood steadfastly by his man.
"In 1997, then-Sgt. James Burke was named Cop of the Year, an award given by colleagues based on exemplifying the traits most important to being a police officer," according to a statement Bellone issued in October 2013, during Loeb's trial. Loeb was sentenced in April 2014 to 3 years in state prison for his role in the Burke theft.
Bellone noted then that Burke had been "promoted seven times under three administrations, oversaw all investigations for District Attorney [Thomas] Spota, and he has also received 45 commendations for outstanding service. Based on the entirety of his accomplishments over 27 years in law enforcement, James Burke earned the position of chief of department."
But days before he is to seek re-election on Nov. 3 to a second term, Bellone learned of a second federal investigation into the same allegations.
And Burke, very quickly, was helped along his way out.
What changed?
Bellone said Wednesday that he stood squarely with Burke in 2013 in part because both were new in their positions. And because Burke -- who, in an unusual move, had been named chief of department before Bellone settled on a police commissioner -- mirrored Bellone's view on community policing and other strategies.
"We were in line with the kind of reforms that were necessary," Bellone said. "I'm a big data-driven guy and he believes in data-driven policing."
But then came word -- this week, Bellone said -- that federal prosecutors were taking another look at Burke. "My understanding is that the investigation was closed, and that now it has been opened again," Bellone said.
Bellone said he has not spoken to federal authorities, but learned of the new probe through other avenues. "I don't know details, other than that the investigation appears to involve Jim," Bellone said.
With that, he said, he called Burke in for a meeting, where the two agreed that Burke should step down. "We thought it would be in the best interest of the department," he said.
Burke, who could not be reached for comment Wednesday, has been charged with no crime.
Did Bellone ask his political advisers about whether to shed Burke, and acknowledge the second federal investigation, so close to Election Day?
"I did," he said. "They told me don't do it, but I felt I had to make a decision regarding the department, not politics."
Even so, the department -- and Bellone -- might not be spared. But that depends on where this -- the second federal investigation into the 2012 allegations of abuse -- ends up.

Joye Brown

LIJOY29

How Steve Bellone came around on the need for James Burke to go

Suffolk County Chief of Department James Burke, the force's highest-ranking uniformed officer, resigned Tuesday as federal officials reactivated their probe into police conduct in the theft of the chief's duffel bag.
Federal prosecutors in the Eastern District and FBI agents have begun again a grand jury probe looking into the circumstances surrounding the December 2012 arrest of Christopher Loeb, a Smithtown man who broke into Burke's department SUV and stole a duffel bag, sources familiar with the investigation said. 
A source said Loeb is a material witness into the current federal investigation into Burke. The source said federal investigators met with Loeb last week.
Noel DiGerolamo, Suffolk Patrolmens Benevolent Association president, said officers received subpoenas to appear before a federal grand jury in the "last few weeks."
The Suffolk PBA also was issued a federal subpoena Oct. 14, for bylaws, the structure of the organization and records regarding their attorneys. He said he was unaware of the target of those subpoenas.
Possible charges that the grand jury is considering are violations of civil rights by law enforcement officers and obstruction of justice, sources said. Burke has not been charged with any wrongdoing.
Burke's attorney, Joseph Conway of Mineola, said, "After a stellar and courageous career, Chief Burke stepped down today and will officially retire at the end of this month for personal and family reasons. His decision to retire is unrelated to any speculation of a federal investigation. Chief Burke vehemently denies any wrongdoing whatsoever and looks forward to the next chapter in his life."
Suffolk County Executive Steve Bellone said he brought Burke into his office Tuesday after learning the federal probe concerning Loeb was reopened. 
"It was mutually agreed this would be in the best interest of Suffolk County," Bellone said in an interview.
He declined to detail the probe. "It's specifically related to the fact that there's a renewed federal investigation," Bellone said. "I don't want to put the department through another federal investigation."
"The chief had his reasons," Bellone said. "We mutually agreed that's what made sense at this moment, for Suffolk County."
Suffolk Police Commissioner Edward Webber praised Burke as one of "the most outstanding supervisors, investigators, and trainers in the history of the Suffolk County Police Department."
Webber said Chief of Support Services Stuart Cameron has been designated acting chief of department and will be appointed within 15 days.
DiGerolamo, the union official, said he remained a big backer of Burke.
"It's a sad day for the Suffolk County Police Department because he did a tremendous job of returning us to a proactive department," he said.
But not all were so supportive.
Legis. Robert Trotta (R-Fort Salonga), a former Suffolk police detective, who had been removed from a prestigious joint county-federal task force during Burke's leadership, said, "It is a travesty that County Executive Bellone appointed him police chief in the first place."
Loeb's attorney, Bruce Barket of Garden City, said of county officials: "I was surprised they circled the wagons around him for as long as they have; this is not a rogue police officer, some patrolman in an obscure part of the county. This is the chief of department who behaved the way he did."
Loeb, 29, has filed a federal lawsuit against the county, Burke and other police officers for violating his civil rights.
An admitted heroin addict, Loeb was sentenced in April 2014 to three years in state prison for his role in the Burke theft.
An initial federal investigation into the circumstances surrounding the arrest of Loeb, who admitted in January 2014 to stealing a duffel bag from Burke's SUV, did not result in any charges filed, according to sources. The vehicle was parked in front of the chief's home in St. James.
Loeb said he was beaten at the time of the arrest by other officers and Burke, who initially showed up first at the scene of his arrest and later at the Fourth Precinct in Smithtown, where Loeb was taken.
Another attorney for Loeb, Barket's partner Amy Marion, has suggested that Burke was anxious to personally retrieve the duffel bag and acted the way he did because the duffel contained, what her client said, were sex toys and DVDs of "nasty porn."
Authorities have said it contained a department gun belt with ammunition, handcuffs, a whistle and a box of cigars.
At a pretrial hearing on the theft of the duffel bag case, Loeb testified first that when he was held in a room at the Fourth Precinct, two officers punched him in the face and ribs when he asked for a lawyer, and one of the officers said he would rape his mother.
That officer has denied making such a statement.
Later Loeb said, Burke walked into a room and ordered the officers there to leave.
Burke then closed the door, Loeb said, and grabbed his face with his left hand and squeezed it. Burke said: "Do you want to steal from me? Do you want to steal from me?" and punched him on the top of the head, Loeb said.
Finally, Loeb said, two other officers came into the room, and pleaded with Burke to leave, saying, "Boss, leave it alone. Leave it alone."
Burke's attorney, Conway, has denied that his client ever mistreated Loeb.
Burke, 51, has been in Suffolk law enforcement for most of his 30-year career, and he was the chief investigator for Suffolk County District Attorney Thomas Spota for a decade before Bellone appointed him to the ranking uniformed officer's post.

LIBURK28

Suffolk Police Chief James Burke resigns as federal probe reopens

Suffolk police chief resigns amid probe

burke

James Burke's exit is long overdue. Burke, the chief of the Suffolk County Police Department, retired Tuesday under a cloud.
It has been 30 years since he became an officer and more than two years since a federal probe was opened into his conduct with Christopher Loeb, then 26. Loeb was accused of breaking into Burke's SUV and taking his gun belt, ammunition, handcuffs and personal effects. Now the Eastern District of New York has reopened that probe, and Burke has quit. 
Much of what happened with Loeb, a repeat offender who admitted taking Burke's things, is unknown. But a police report says Burke went to the man's Smithtown home while other cops were apprehending him, which is improper. And police sources have said Burke ordered everyone else out of an interrogation room so he could be alone with Loeb, which falls even further astray of the rules. Loeb claims Burke assaulted him. 
But disgraceful as all this was, there were better reasons for Burke to step down. A Newsday report of his history as a street cop was deeply troubling. An internal affairs investigation concluded that he had a sexual relationship with a felon and drug addict while on the job, and failed to secure his gun. And this baggage led to a lack of trust in Burke from other agencies and all but quashed Suffolk County's ability to cooperate with task forces operated by the FBI and Drug Enforcement Administration. 
Such special efforts are badly needed at a time when heroin use and the crimes that accompany it weigh heavily on residents. And with Burke at the helm, department morale was low. 
Burke's retirement comes a week before an election likely to give County Executive Steve Bellone a second term. Bellone had always defended Burke against all criticism, even during the initial federal probe. The county executive said Burke was a good leader with innovative policing ideas. Clearly something has changed. Finally.

VPBURKE28

Suffolk police chief departs none too soon

Editorial: Suffolk police chief exit is overdue

Suffolk County Executive Steve Bellone's pick for chief of the police department is being attacked by Republican Suffolk County Executive candidate James O'Connor. 
"Bellone's hand-picked top cop was found to have had a relationship with a convicted felon known to be engaged in possession and sale of illegal drugs, larceny, and prostitution," says an O'Connor posting on Facebook, which links to an October 2013 pix11.com story about James Burke, who is chief of department. 
A 1995 internal affairs report said Burke as a sergeant twice lost his service weapon and had a relationship with a woman with a criminal past. Spokesmen for Bellone and the police did not respond to requests for comment.

Burke

Suffolk exec candidate O'Connor slams Bellone top-cop pick

A Suffolk County attorney said Friday that Police Chief James Burke made a mistake when he showed up during a 2012 probation visit at the Smithtown home of the man suspected of taking the top cop's duffel bag but did not violate the suspect's civil rights. 
"We absolutely deny any ill conduct toward this guy," deputy county attorney Brian Mitchell said during an initial conference hearing Friday in U.S. District Court in Central Islip over a lawsuit that Christopher Loeb, 28, filed in February against the county, Burke and several officers. 
The suit claims Loeb was beaten by police at his home and then again at the Fourth Precinct, where he was terrorized, chained to the floor and threatened while in custody. 
Loeb seeks compensation for damages in excess of $150,000. 
Loeb pleaded guilty in January 2014 to taking Burke's bag. He is serving 3 years in prison on charges of criminal possession of a weapon and violation of probation. 
Loeb was arrested Dec. 14, 2012, near his home in Smithtown during a violation of probation home visit just hours after he took a duffel bag from Burke's vehicle in nearby St. James. 
In a 2013 hearing, Loeb testified the bag contained gym shorts, toiletries, sex toys and about five DVDs of what he described as "nasty porno." 
Authorities have said the bag contained a box of cigars, and a gun belt carrying ammunition, handcuffs and a whistle. 
After the hearing before U.S. Magistrate Judge Steven I. Locke, Loeb's attorney, Amy Marion of Garden City, said Burke had pornography and "disturbing items" in his duffel bag that may have prompted him to conduct himself the way he did. 
"It's just not consistent with reasonable behavior . . . it's unusually odd for a chief to go to the scene of a petty theft to look at the person who may have stolen cigars?" Marion said. 
During the probation visit that normally is conducted by one or two officers, law enforcement sources said, dozens of officers showed up to Loeb's home. 
"It seems strange to me that the chief who is a victim of a crime to go to a crime scene himself. That seems off to me," Locke said Friday. 
Mitchell told Locke that Burke showed up to Loeb's home to retrieve his duffel bag after Loeb was no longer present and only after the bag and the items inside were photographed and logged in and to personally thank the officers for doing a good job. 
Locke then asked why Burke showed up to the precinct where Loeb was being held. 
Mitchell responded, "Poor judgment," then added that Burke wanted to see if he recognized Loeb because he lived in the area. 
"There's no force. There's no contact," Mitchell said, adding there is no medical evidence that suggests Loeb was hurt and his mug shots don't show any obvious signs of physical force used against him. 
Mitchell then rhetorically asked if it was usual for a victim to enter a crime scene. "Probably not," he said. 
The next court date is scheduled for July 30.

LILOEB02

Police Chief Burke erred when he went to suspect's house, says Suffolk County attorney

Lawyer: Top cop showed 'poor judgment'

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The Smithtown man who has said he was beaten by Suffolk Chief of Department James Burke while detained in the Fourth Precinct station house has filed a lawsuit against the officer and county, claiming his civil rights were violated during a December 2012 arrest. 
Christopher Loeb, 28, who is serving 3 years in prison on concurrent sentences of criminal possession of a weapon and violation of probation, says in the lawsuit filed Thursday in federal district court that Burke "personally took part in and personally orchestrated" the alleged beating. 
He seeks compensation for damages in excess of $150,000. 
Suffolk County attorney Dennis Brown said he has not yet seen the lawsuit and could not comment. A police spokesman has said in the past that Burke denies any wrongdoing. 
The litigation charges Loeb was beaten, terrorized, chained to the floor and threatened while he was in custody Dec. 14, 2012, at the Fourth Precinct station house for 48 hours before being transferred to the Third Precinct so he could await arraignment. 
The complaint, which also names six other officers as defendants, alleges that Suffolk County allowed Burke to commit several "unconstitutional and tortious acts," including the use of excessive force, covering up questionable conduct and failing to adequately screen, train "and/or discipline its officers." 
In addition, the complaint charges that Burke and the county "did not rectify the problem, did not investigate, and did not institute better hiring standards and procedures" and that they "wholly lacked in their responsibilities to insure officers were acting in a constitutionally justified manner." 
As a result Loeb "was seriously injured, and was subjected to great fear, terror, personal humiliation and degradation and suffered great physical pain and impairment, mental and emotional distress," the complaint said. 
"This action is indicative of what occurs when a police department continually refuses to acknowledge, examine, and confront the misconduct and abuse perpetuated by its employees," said Loeb's attorney, Amy Marion of Garden City. "This police department has consistently refused to change and improve its hiring, training, and disciplining of its officers, resulting in high level officials and policymakers dictating a tolerance for abuse which pervades the department and goes untreated." 
Bag taken from vehicle 
Loeb was arrested Dec. 14, 2012, near his parent's home in Smithtown during a violation of probation home visit just hours after he took a duffel bag from Burke's vehicle in nearby St. James. 
Newsday first reported Loeb's arrest on Feb. 8, 2013. He was moved to federal custody in June 2013 after sources said the FBI and U.S. attorney's office for the Eastern District launched an investigation into Burke's actions. 
A special prosecutor from the Queens district attorney's office who ended up trying the Loeb case wrote in a January 2014 pretrial motion that the federal case against Burke was closed. Federal authorities have never said that the case against Burke was concluded. 
On Jan. 24, 2014, Loeb pleaded guilty to taking Burke's gun belt and ammunition from the chief's department-issued vehicle and was sentenced to prison. 
State Supreme Court Justice Martin Efman ruled Suffolk police violated Loeb's rights, in a Dec. 17, 2013, decision to suppress incriminating statements he made to police while in custody. Efman said in the finding Loeb's statements were inadmissible because he wasn't advised of his rights and not brought to court as soon as possible. 
During an interview at the Washington Correctional Facility in upstate Comstock, Loeb said he knew the duffel bag he took belonged to someone in law enforcement because there was an empty bag nearby marked "evidence" tucked between "a bunch of clothes" inside the vehicle. 
Differing accounts 
Loeb said once he got home he took from the bag a gun belt that held two Glock 9-mm magazines and brought it downstairs. Investigators would later discover the gun belt in a vacuum cleaner in the basement. 
He said he opened up the bag in his bedroom that morning to find gym shorts, toiletries, a stack of DVDs containing pornographic images on the covers and sex toys. 
Authorities have said the bag contained a box of cigars, and a gun belt carrying ammunition, handcuffs and a whistle. Loeb testified in court that the bag also contained sex toys and about five DVDs of what he described during a 2013 hearing as "nasty porno." 
Efman said officers' testimony that they had not seen any was "credible." 
Loeb was on probation for grand larceny and criminal possession of stolen property convictions when he said he broke into Burke's vehicle. 
Records show probation officers reported that they failed to make contact with Loeb twice after a pair of brass knuckles were discovered in his home during a home visit in November 2012. 
When they returned Dec. 14 accompanied by Suffolk's Fourth Precinct crime section, Loeb said he bolted out the back door of his parent's home before a probation officer caught up to him. 
Once he was brought back in, Loeb said he saw detectives in his kitchen, in his den and in his bedroom. Loeb said the duffel bag was taken by a plainclothes detective he never saw again. 
At the Fourth Precinct station house, Loeb said, he was interrogated for 10 hours and not only physically assaulted by Burke but also threatened and assaulted by other officers. 
According to probation records, Burke showed up at Loeb's house to identify his items, but sources said he took his bag with him. 
Records show Loeb was indicted three days after his arrest. The Suffolk County district attorney recused himself from the case Feb. 15, 2013, citing a conflict of interest. Burke was District Attorney Thomas Spota's chief investigator for a decade before the Bellone administration appointed him chief of police in 2012.

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Smithtown man says Suffolk police Chief James Burke violated his civil rights

$150G suit: Top cop 'personally took part' in beating

Christopher Loeb describes alleged police abuse

A Smithtown man sentenced to state prison for breaking into Suffolk Police Chief James Burke's department-issued SUV, as well as other vehicles, remained in federal custody Monday.
Christopher Loeb was sentenced Friday to three years in prison and processed at the Suffolk County Jail in Riverhead, a sheriff's spokesman said. But instead of being transferred to the state prison system, which is standard procedure, U.S. marshals took Loeb back into federal custody that night.
Loeb was first taken into federal custody last year because federal officials were investigating Burke to see if he violated Loeb's civil rights while the 27-year-old was in custody after his arrest. In January, special state prosecutor Peter Crusco filed a motion in state Supreme Court, claiming that Suffolk Chief of Detectives William Madigan said former Assistant FBI director April Brooks told him the Burke investigation was closed. Federal authorities have not said the probe is closed. 
Robert Nardoza, a spokesman for the U.S. attorney's office of the Eastern District, declined to comment on the marshals' action on Friday.
A detainer was placed on Loeb so that when federal officials are done with him, he will be taken to a state prison to serve his sentence, the sheriff's spokesman said. 
Loeb was held on $500,000 bond at the Riverhead jail after his Dec. 14, 2012, arrest. Federal authorities took him into custody in June 2013 as a material witness.
The FBI had been investigating Burke, 49, the department's top uniformed officer, concerning claims that he had beaten Loeb.
During a pretrial hearing last year, Loeb testified that Burke and detectives punched him while interrogating him in the Fourth Precinct station house after his arrest. 
Police witnesses testified Burke went to Loeb's house while it was being searched and took his bag, which Loeb testified contained "nasty pornography."
Police and prosecutors say Loeb and an accomplice took a bag out of Burke's department-issued SUV in the Smithtown area in December 2012. Burke has denied any wrongdoing. Loeb pleaded guilty this year to third-degree criminal possession of a weapon.

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Burke accuser remains in federal custody

Christopher Loeb -- cropped

A Smithtown heroin addict was sentenced Friday to 3 years in prison for stealing a duffel bag containing a gun belt and ammunition from a car issued to the Suffolk police department's top uniformed officer. 
Christopher Loeb, 27, insisted again in court that his constitutional rights were violated because Chief of Department James Burke beat him while in custody -- a charge Burke has denied. 
State Supreme Court Justice Martin Efman, scarcely acknowledging the allegation, said Loeb broke into a number of parked cars to feed his addiction and had only himself to blame for his troubles. 
"There were other victims other than Mr. Burke who were hurt by your actions . . . This is the second time you have appeared before me on the same kind of thing," Efman said. 
The judge ordered Loeb, who has admitted to a $100-a-day heroin habit, to receive drug treatment while in prison. 
"You have to deal with that yourself . . . If you don't work that out, you'll spend a lot of time in jail," Efman told him. 
Loeb was not required to serve additional prison time for a probation violation in a 2012 larceny case. 
Loeb's attorney said outside the Riverhead courtroom that his client was sorry for his crimes, but might not have expressed himself well. 
"He's been remorseful since Day 1," said attorney Daniel Barker of Riverhead. "It was unfortunate, because at times in court he was angry and anxious about the actions of the Suffolk County Police Department, and at times it became intertwined." 
The special prosecutor brought in to handle the case, Peter Crusco of the Queens district attorney's office, had no comment on the sentence. 
Loeb reiterated during the sentencing that Burke violated his rights after his December 2012 arrest. "I want the court to know I am upset on that matter," he said. "They weren't held accountable for their actions." 
An FBI investigation into the alleged beating has been closed, Crusco said in January. 
Loeb pleaded guilty that month to third-degree criminal possession of a weapon. He had faced more than 9 years for weapon, theft and probation charges. 
During an evidence-suppression hearing in the case, a Suffolk police sergeant and a detective testified that they saw Burke in the interrogation room with Loeb at the Fourth Precinct after his arrest. Det. Keith Sinclair and Sgt. Michael Kelly said they saw no bruises or signs of abuse on Loeb after Burke left the room. 
Barker asked Sinclair whether it was unusual to have such a high-ranking official in an interrogation room. Crusco objected. The judge upheld the objection, and the question was not answered. 
Retired Suffolk County Det. Richard Cottingham, the lead detective in the case, testified that Burke appeared at Loeb's house the morning of the arrest and reclaimed the duffel bag.

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Christopher Loeb gets 3 years for stealing top Suffolk cop James Burke's gun belt, ammo

The Smithtown heroin addict who testified that James Burke, the Suffolk police department's highest-ranking uniformed officer, beat him while in custody pleaded guilty Friday with obvious reluctance to stealing Burke's gun belt and ammunition from his police-issued vehicle. 
While pleading guilty to third-degree criminal possession of a weapon, Christopher Loeb, 27, hesitated when special prosecutor Peter Crusco asked him whether on Dec. 14, 2012, he had possession of Burke's gun belt and high-capacity ammunition magazines.
"No, I didn't," Loeb said.
He denied it again when State Supreme Court Justice Martin Efman asked him whether he recalled saying that he took those items while testifying during his pretrial hearing, prompting Efman to temporarily abandon the plea process and order a trial.
"I'm sorry," Loeb said. "I have to cop to it." He then finally admitted taking Burke's duffel bag, which contained the gun belt and ammunition.
In return for the plea, Efman promised to sentence Loeb on Feb. 26 to 3 years in prison and order that he take part in drug treatment. 
"It's clear to me that the defendant has a serious drug problem and he should be treated for that while he's in custody," Efman said.
During the hearing, Loeb testified that he had a $100-a-day heroin habit.
The plea eliminates the possibility of a trial at which Burke might have been questioned about whether he beat Loeb and whether he went to Loeb's house while it was still being searched to recover his stolen duffel bag. Loeb testified at a pretrial hearing that in addition to the gun belt, the bag contained "nasty pornography."
Afterward, defense attorney Daniel Barker of Riverhead said his client balked at entering the plea because he was nervous and "a little uncomfortable about the proceedings."
Barker said Loeb is disappointed that Burke won't have to testify, but Loeb had to do what was in his best interest. If he'd contested the weapons, grand larceny and probation violation charges and been convicted, Loeb could have faced 9 1/3 to 14 years in prison.
Loeb remains in federal custody, although Crusco said in a motion earlier this month that a federal investigation of Burke had been closed. Crusco, a Queens assistant district attorney, was appointed because of Burke's close ties to Suffolk District Attorney Thomas Spota. Federal officials have declined to say if the investigation is closed.
After the plea was entered, court officers initially were going to send Loeb to the Suffolk County jail for the first time in months, but Efman, Barker and Crusco said federal authorities would continue to hold him.

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Heroin addict pleads guilty to stealing James Burke's gun belt

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Any testimony from Suffolk Police Chief of Department James Burke in the trial of the man charged with stealing his gun belt and duffel bag should be limited because a federal investigation of Burke is closed, a special prosecutor said in a motion filed Wednesday.
The pretrial motion also argued that Burke should not be allowed to be questioned about his conduct in 1993, when an internal affairs report said allegations were made that he lost his gun to a prostitute and repeat felon with whom he had sex in his patrol car.
In the motion filed Wednesday with state Supreme Court Justice Martin Efman, special state prosecutor Peter Crusco said Suffolk Chief of Detectives William Madigan told him that Assistant FBI Director April Brooks said on Dec. 18 "that their investigation of Chief James Burke was closed."
Federal authorities declined to say Wednesday if whether the investigation was closed.
The FBI had been investigating Burke, 49, the department's top uniformed officer, concerning claims that he had beaten Christopher Loeb, 27, the Smithtown man charged with stealing his duffel bag and gun belt from his unlocked, police-issued GMC Yukon in December 2012. During a pretrial hearing last year, Loeb testified that Burke and detectives punched him while interrogating him in the Fourth Precinct station house after he was arrested in December 2012. Police witnesses testified Burke came to Loeb's house while it was being searched and took his bag, which Loeb testified contained "nasty pornography."
Crusco is handling the grand larceny and probation violation cases against Loeb because of Burke's close ties to Suffolk District Attorney Thomas Spota.
Burke's attorney, Joseph Conway of Mineola, said the FBI told Burke on Dec. 18 that its investigation was "inactive." Conway said he confirmed that with the U.S. attorney's office about a week later.
"It was certainly a relief for the chief," Conway said.
Crusco said that if Burke testifies at Loeb's trial defense attorney Daniel Barker shouldn't be allowed to question him about that investigation because it "would be collateral, misleading, confusing, speculative and calling for hearsay." Crusco added that the 1993 events are "too remote and irrelevant to the issues at this trial."
Barker disagreed. "The credibility of a witness, no matter who it is, is always relevant on cross-examination," he said. 
Several criminal defense attorneys not on the case agreed. One, Bruce Barket of Garden City, said, usually almost anything is fair game when cross-examining a witness.
"If Burke gets on the stand and testifies, the defense can stand up and say, 'Didn't you beat the hell out of my client?' " Barket said. "He could even go into the pornography."
Barker noted that he tried to limit Crusco's cross-examination of Loeb during the pretrial hearing using a similar argument and lost.
With Robert E. Kessler

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Prosecutor: Feds closed probe into Chief James Burke

 James Burke

A judge ruled Tuesday that Suffolk police violated the rights of the Smithtown heroin addict accused of stealing a gun belt and duffel bag from James Burke, the department's highest uniformed officer. 
The ruling by state Supreme Court Justice Martin Efman means a special prosecutor will not be able to use incriminating statements that police say Christopher Loeb, 27, made while in their custody if there is a trial.
Efman noted Loeb's claim that Burke and detectives beat him before they say he confessed to breaking into cars in the St. James area to steal items to support his heroin habit. However, Efman did not rely on the assertion when making his ruling.
Instead, Efman said Suffolk police obtained the confessions illegally by failing to remind Loeb during his lengthy interrogation that he had the rights to an attorney and to remain silent, and by failing to bring him to court for arraignment within 24 hours of his Dec. 14, 2012, arrest. 
Thus, Efman said, "The statements were involuntary."
Loeb is charged with grand larceny, possession of stolen property and drug crimes. Burke's attorney has denied any beating took place. 
Efman said that by finding Loeb's statements were inadmissible because he wasn't advised of his rights and not brought to court as soon as possible, there was no need to consider other issues.
"Not all of them were relevant to the legal issues before the court," he wrote.
Efman also ruled that the seizure of evidence from Loeb's house was lawful, even though it was done without a warrant. 
Efman noted that because Loeb was on probation, he had essentially agreed to periodic searches of his home by law enforcement officers. 
During a lengthy pretrial hearing, officers testified that Burke showed up at Loeb's house during the search and took his duffel bag. Loeb testified during the hearing that the bag contained "nasty pornography."
Efman acknowledged the claim, but said officers' testimony that they had not seen any pornography in the bag was "credible." He said Loeb's defense seemed to suggest "that the alleged abusive behavior by police was prompted by a desire to cover up evidence of the pornography."
Efman didn't address the issue any further.
In the Riverhead courtroom Tuesday, Efman reminded Loeb that he admitted to several crimes during the hearing and told him he "has some important decisions to make" before he returns to court Jan. 17. 
Special prosecutor Peter Crusco, appointed because of Burke's close ties to Suffolk District Attorney Thomas Spota, said, "We respect the decision of the court."
Defense attorney Daniel Barker said he would discuss how to proceed with his client in the next few weeks.

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Judge: Suffolk police violated suspect's rights

Evidence that a Smithtown heroin addict stole a gun belt and a duffel bag belonging to the top uniformed official of the Suffolk Police Department should be suppressed because of the misbehavior of that official and other detectives, the defendant's attorney said in a written argument submitted Monday to a judge. 
Christopher Loeb, 27, is facing grand larceny, possession of stolen property and other charges. One of the vehicles he is accused of breaking into was the department's GMC Yukon used by Chief of Department James Burke. Loeb was arrested almost a year ago when his probation officer noticed possibly stolen property at his house. A search turned up some items owned by Burke. 
Defense attorney Daniel Barker argued in papers submitted to state Supreme Court Justice Martin Efman that much of the case against Loeb is tainted and should be excluded. Barker wrote that the search of Loeb's house was illegal and that because, he said, Burke and detectives beat Loeb while he was in custody, any statements he made were coerced and therefore inadmissible at trial. 
Special prosecutor Peter Crusco, appointed because of Burke's close ties to Suffolk District Attorney Thomas Spota, argued in his papers that police had acted properly. Efman said he will rule on the issues Dec. 17. 
During an extensive pre-trial hearing, Loeb testified that Burke's duffel bag contained "nasty pornography." Detectives said Burke visited Loeb's house during the search and took the bag. 
Crusco dismissed Loeb's testimony as "part and parcel of his attempt to manipulate his predicament to his advantage by concocting a story about pornography that he allegedly discovered in the . . . bag, and an alleged police cover-up." 
But Barker wrote that Burke brought these questions on himself by improperly entering Loeb's house and taking the bag. "The contents of the bag were never inventoried, nor photographed," he added. 
Further, the entire search was illegal, Barker wrote. Although Loeb's probation officer had a right to be in his home, police did not because they didn't have a search warrant. 
"These officers were on a mission to find the Chief of Police's gun belt," Barker wrote. 
Crusco, however, wrote that police were there properly to support the probation officer's search of the house. 
Loeb's interrogation also was tainted, Barker wrote. Detectives hit and choked his client even before Burke entered the interview room and punched him in the head, he wrote. 
Barker wrote that it was "quite telling" that Crusco didn't call Burke as a witness during the hearing and that it made no sense that Burke would enter the room just to see if he recognized Loeb. 
"Chief James Burke entered the interrogation room to do just what Christopher Loeb testified about, to threaten and physically abuse Christopher Loeb without any fear of being held accountable," Barker wrote. 
Crusco didn't explicitly address Loeb's claims that he was beaten. He wrote that "the detectives were constantly solicitous of defendant's physical needs" and that they "did not act improperly, much less coercively" when they took his statements in which he described breaking into cars.

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Defense: Suffolk police chief's stolen items not admissible

During a tense and, at times, emotional cross-examination Thursday, a Smithtown man denied he invented a tale about getting punched in the head by Suffolk's top uniformed police official and finding "disgusting pornography" in the top cop's duffel bag.
Christopher Loeb, 27, during questioning from special prosecutor Peter Crusco, denied he made up his accusations against Chief of Department James Burke as a way to get out from under the grand larceny, possession of stolen property and other charges against him. He acknowledged stealing a duffel bag from Burke's sport utility vehicle.
Crusco suggested Loeb thought he'd gotten lucky when he discovered he'd stolen Burke's things.
"You started thinking, 'How can I turn this to my advantage?' " Crusco said.
"Absolutely not," said Loeb, who frequently raised his voice during his testimony.
The confrontation came during a pretrial hearing to determine if statements that police say Loeb made after his arrest on Dec. 14, 2012, will be admissible at trial.
Burke's attorney, Joseph Conway of Mineola, said he expects Burke to be cleared of any wrongdoing.
"Today's testimony clearly illustrates a desperate attempt by a twice-convicted felon and admitted drug abuser to avoid a lengthy prison sentence by concocting an 'Alice in Wonderland' fantasy story that he was framed and then beaten, despite overwhelming evidence to the contrary," Conway said.
Loeb is charged with stealing items from several cars in the St. James area, including from Burke's unlocked GMC Yukon. Earlier in the hearing, officers testified that Burke showed up at Loeb's house in Smithtown and, during a police search, took the duffel bag that had been stolen from the SUV, and that, later, Burke spent one or two minutes with Loeb in the interrogation room.
Loeb, convicted in April 2012 of felony grand larceny, testified the duffel bag contained pornography and other items. The FBI and the U.S. attorney's office for the Eastern District are investigating whether Burke assaulted Loeb, law enforcement sources have said. Loeb is being held as a material witness in federal custody.
Although Burke was in the courthouse for a second day, neither Crusco nor defense attorney Daniel Barker called him to testify. Both declined to comment on why they didn't call Burke.
Conway said Burke did nothing improper in collecting his property at Loeb's house. "He's actually the victim," Conway said. Burke will cooperate with any investigation into Loeb's beating claims, which he denies, Conway said.
He said Loeb's description of five pornographic DVDs in a side pocket of the duffel bag was "a fantasy of the defendant's."
During questioning by Crusco, Loeb refused to say what kind of pornography it was because "there were threats made to my family and myself."
"Mr. Loeb, it didn't take much to concoct this story, did it?" Crusco asked. State Supreme Court Justice Martin Efman sustained an objection to the question, so Loeb didn't answer.
Loeb did say he steals, though, and later acknowledged having a variety of stolen property in his bedroom, including Burke's bag.
"Lying isn't too far from that, is it?" Crusco asked. Efman sustained an objection to that question, too.
With testimony complete, Efman directed Crusco and Barker to submit written arguments on whether Loeb's statements should be suppressed. They may make oral arguments as well at the next court date, Dec. 2.
With Tania Lopez

James Burke: Complete coverage

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