Nassau police ethics practices to be studied

Nassau County Executive Edward Mangano has selected a Washington-based police research organization to review and strengthen the ethics policies of the county police department, which has faced allegations of officer misconduct.

The Police Executive Research Forum, a nonprofit group comprised of county and state law enforcement agencies, was among 13 firms that bid for the contract to review the department's ethics policies, rules and training.

"A fresh look at administrative procedures will ensure NCPD policies advance departmental professionalism," Mangano said in a statement.

The county sought an outside firm to examine ethics practices in the wake of several high-profile controversies involving Nassau police. They include Police Commissioner Thomas Dale's resignation in December after revelations he ordered the arrest of a witness in a politically charged case, the conviction of a top-ranking officer for misusing his position to help prevent the arrest of a friend's son and the 2012 indictment of an officer for allegedly spending numerous shifts with his mistresses instead of covering his beat.

The research forum will begin work on the three-year contract in March, said spokesman Craig Fischer. He said he expects a team of up to 12 staffers and outside experts to work on the contract.

The cost of the contract is still under negotiation, said acting Nassau police Commissioner Thomas Krumpter.

James Carver, president of Nassau's Police Benevolent Association, said the ethics review should be performed in-house.

NYPD Commissioner William Bratton served two terms as president of the forum, with the last ending in 2007. Philadelphia Police Commissioner Charles Ramsey is the current president.

The nonprofit will recommend programs to improve police accountability, implement an "early warning system" to detect patterns of potentially problematic behavior by police staff and develop a "self-assessment system" to evaluate the department's performance compared with other police agencies, the county said.

Fischer said the forum will conduct interviews with police personnel and community leaders about departmental operations. It also will develop an eight-hour ethics training session for department officials.

The nonprofit has conducted more than 250 management studies of individual law enforcement agencies, Fischer said.

In 2005, the firm developed a strategy to reduce homicides in Minneapolis, Minn. The company said it helped cut homicides in the city by 40 percent.