The Blue Code: Using Our Police to Intimidate Residents?

We all understand the infamous “blue code” and the brotherhood of the police. And, in certain instances it is understandable why it happens. But how long should it be tolerated and can it be ignored? An ABG staffer related an incident with his brother-in-law, a local police officer who arrived at the scene of an automobile accident to find the perpetrator of the accident, a probationary police officer from a different jurisdiction, who had flipped his car and subsequently struck two parked cars. There were no injuries, but it was evident to this officer that the probationary police officer had been drinking excessively. He admits he tried to follow the “Blue Code” but was unable to do so without jeopardizing his own career. The Blue Code is the unwritten code of police officers helping their own. To this day, the brother-in-law says he wanted to help his fellow officer, but could not. He did the right thing for himself and the community. No Blue Code.

On a Sunday evening, the police department gets a call for a two-car automobile accident. An ambulance is also dispatched as the elderly passenger of the vehicle that was struck was complaining of chest pains. A Hispanic-speaking paramedic explained the elderly man’s pain was apparently a result of the seatbelt locking into position to restrain the occupants of the struck vehicle. He refused medial aid. ABG's staffer ran into two officers at a diner after their shift, one of which was the one on scene of the accident. He explained that the perpetrator of the car accident was a local village official.

The officer felt he was in-between the proverbial rock and a hard place. He wanted to cut the official a break but couldn’t. There was damage to both vehicles, a small crowd had formed and he did not want to put his job in jeopardy. During the second cup of coffee, he repeated that he felt bad about not being able to help the official but had to do the right thing. He hated being put in the position. The staffer told him the driver was intoxicated he chose to drink and drive. The officer did the right thing and had no reason to feel bad about his actions. And he replied, “But still… what else could I do?” It was simple, do the right thing. No Blue Code. How many other times does this happen? It seems more often than we know.

The Wednesday night Greenburgh Town Board meeting seemed somewhat beyond the normal entropy we observe every two weeks. The regulars were there, not content with the usual pandering by our Town Supervisor. After a certain amount of contentious behavior, the supervisor claimed in frustration that if the disruptive residents continued their outbursts he would end the meeting. Well, as political history has proved, nothing can stop Greenburgh residents from the frustrations of The Paul. But this time, The Paul called their bluff, ending the Town Board meeting at about 9 PM, the unofficial start time after his pre-meeting campaigning, and moved the meeting to executive session.

Several residents remained for a brief period to see if our Board would return to the Hall. When the Board did not emerge for some time, several of the residents left the parking area. Finally, Councilwoman Sonya Brown, whom we applaud for finally voting her conscience, exited the building. Now that Ms. Brown has finally stopped drinking the Feiner political Kool-Aid, her resistance to him and the rest of the rubber-stamping board is a breath of fresh air. We’re puzzled as to why it took so long.

The below story was related to ABG by two separate individuals:

With just Councilwoman Brown and one resident in the parking lot, Councilman Kevin Morgan, a former Greenburgh police officer, exited the building with the other board members, stopped, and from a distance looked at the two still in the lot, retrieved his cell phone and appeared to make a phone call. He then proceeded to his car and left. Minutes later a police cruiser pulled into the north end of the lot, turned off his lights and appeared to be observing the Councilwoman and the resident. After about ten minutes, it left. Coincidence? Perhaps. Minutes later an SUV with dark tinted windows pulled in and went to the middle of the lot and turned off his lights.

Councilwoman Brown approached the not too distant SUV and tapped on the window. The occupant cracked the window about an inch, maintaining anonymity, and Councilwoman Brown asked if she could help him, perhaps he needed directions, and he replied in the negative. Then she heard him speak into what must have been a Bluetooth headset or a microphone to someone stating, “She claims to be Councilwoman Brown.” He then closed the window. After a few moments, he left, never identifying himself. The Blue Code in action.

At this point these two were, in fact, understandably shaken and decided to leave in tandem. It seems if Morgan made the call to them, his plan was working. Ms. Brown stated she needed to stop for gas before picking up her daughter and proceeding home. In separate cars, the two believed they were followed by a third unmarked police car. They pulled into a nearby gas station and as they parked at the pumps, the same vehicle pulled into the far end of the lot, apparently continuing his unofficial observation. Now in the safety of an open, public area, the other resident walked toward the vehicle to get the license plate number and, as before, the car sped away!

As Councilwoman Brown was heading home via Manhattan Avenue, it was apparent to her that the police department’s game was still in play. She was subsequently passed by a police vehicle before she  returned home. Then, with her daughter in the car, she saw the same unmarked SUV. This time she called her brother to accompany her into her home. That's the Friends and Family Code.

ABG is revolted at the thought that our police would participate in clearly harassing not only certain council members, but also our residents. Residents should have no fear of the police and should not have to worry about intimidation, collusion, or bad judgment such as this. Most of our officers are exemplary, hard-working and ethical people. In fact, ABG believes this is most certainly an anomaly. If Mr. Morgan truly made that call, it is not the norm of our Town employees.We sincerely hope we don’t see any Blue Code episodes in Greenburgh from our elected and municipal employees. If this has happened to you, we'd like to know.