Search Thousands of Civilian Complaints Against New York City Police Officers

This database was last updated in July 2020 and is no longer being updated. Data on this page may be out of date. For more recent information, visit the city's database of civilian complaints against the NYPD.

Abuse of Authority: Threat Of Arrest

This page contains all allegations assigned to this category by the CCRB. Multiple similar allegations can appear for the same officer because a complaint received from a civilian can include multiple allegations.

Officers With Complaints
1,043
Complaints
1,266
Allegations
1,409

What the CCRB’s Conclusions Mean

Substantiated: The alleged conduct occurred and it violated the rules. (Here is a breakdown of the types of discipline the CCRB can recommend. The NYPD can choose to ignore those recommendations. It has discretion over what, if any, discipline is imposed.)

Exonerated: The alleged conduct occurred but did not violate the NYPD’s rules, which often give officers significant discretion over use of force.

Unsubstantiated: The CCRB has fully investigated but could not affirmatively conclude both that the conduct occurred and that it broke the rules.

Officer Rank at Time of Complaint Officer Details Complainant Details CCRB Conclusion Year Received
Scott Henderson Sergeant Black male Black female, 33 years old Unsubstantiated 2002
Brian Nyhus Police Officer White male Black male, 43 years old Exonerated 2002
Curtis Crystal Sergeant White male Black male, 47 years old Unsubstantiated 2002
Christophe Stilianesis Sergeant White male Hispanic male, 31 years old Exonerated 2002
Frank Palumbo Police Officer White male Black male, 36 years old Substantiated (Charges) 2002
Victor Borg Police Officer White male White female, 65 years old Exonerated 2002
Michael Gibbs Police Officer White male Black female, 23 years old Unsubstantiated 2002
Michael Gibbs Police Officer White male Black male, 16 years old Substantiated (Charges) 2002
Yuseff Hamm Police Officer Black male Black male, 51 years old Exonerated 2002
Bruce Solomon Police Officer Black male Hispanic female, 40 years old Exonerated 2002
Curtis Crystal Sergeant White male White male, 62 years old Substantiated (Charges) 2002
Bruce Solomon Police Officer Black male Hispanic female, 42 years old Exonerated 2002
Waliur Rahman Police Officer Asian male Black male Exonerated 2002
Alexander Grandstaff Police Officer White male Black female, 35 years old Substantiated (Command Discipline) 2002
Elias Nikas Lieutenant White male Not available Exonerated 2002
Joseph Bell Lieutenant White male White female, 41 years old Unsubstantiated 2002
Andrew Bershad Police Officer Hispanic male Black male, 21 years old Substantiated (Charges) 2002
Damon Martin Police Officer Black male Black female, 70 years old Unsubstantiated 2002
Joseph Bell Lieutenant White male White male, 42 years old Unsubstantiated 2002
Vincent Maher Police Officer White male White male, 36 years old Exonerated 2002
Rommelle Chin Sergeant Black female White female, 44 years old Exonerated 2002
David Levine Police Officer White male Black male, 31 years old Exonerated 2002
Ramu Hiller Police Officer Asian male Not available Substantiated (Charges) 2002
Lynda Chervoni Police Officer Hispanic female White female, 19 years old Exonerated 2002
Keith Chatterton Police Officer White male Other Race female, 58 years old Unsubstantiated 2002
Peter Efthimiou Sergeant White male Black female, 27 years old Exonerated 2002
Oswaldo Carrion Police Officer Hispanic male Hispanic female, 26 years old Exonerated 2002
Salvatore Molino Detective White male Black female, 33 years old Exonerated 2002
Thomas Kid Sergeant White male White female, 26 years old Exonerated 2002
Edward Young Police Officer Black male Other Race male, 49 years old Unsubstantiated 2002
Marianela Tejada Police Officer Hispanic female Hispanic male, 14 years old Unsubstantiated 2001
Daniel Miraglia Sergeant White male Black male, 27 years old Exonerated 2001
Jeannette Brenes Police Officer White female Black male, 14 years old Substantiated (Charges) 2001
Craig Mastromatteo Police Officer White male Black female, 25 years old Exonerated 2001
Jeannette Brenes Police Officer White female Hispanic male, 44 years old Exonerated 2001
Alexander Grandstaff Police Officer White male Black female, 19 years old Unsubstantiated 2001
Charles Barberi Sergeant White male Black male, 21 years old Unsubstantiated 2001
Michael Gaine Police Officer White male Hispanic female, 22 years old Unsubstantiated 2001
James Eisert Police Officer White male Black male, 15 years old Exonerated 2001
Joey Quigley Police Officer White male Black male, 29 years old Unsubstantiated 2001
Paul Pizzuta Sergeant White male Hispanic male, 24 years old Unsubstantiated 2001
Gerald Breiner Detective White male Hispanic female, 44 years old Exonerated 2001
Franklin Bohr Sergeant White male Hispanic male, 32 years old Exonerated 2001
Carl Roadarmel Detective White male White male, 22 years old Exonerated 2001
Richard Warner Police Officer White male Black male, 35 years old Unsubstantiated 2001
Fernando Espindola Police Officer Hispanic male Hispanic male, 24 years old Unsubstantiated 2001
Gerald Breiner Detective White male Hispanic male, 40 years old Substantiated (Command Discipline) 2001
Adrian Ashby Police Officer Black male Hispanic male, 31 years old Exonerated 2001
Claude Jeanpierre Police Officer Black male White male, 46 years old Substantiated (Command Discipline) 2001
Ischaler Grant Sergeant Black male Black male, 42 years old Substantiated (Charges) 2001
William Simon Police Officer White male Black female, 49 years old Unsubstantiated 2001
Stephen Chan Police Officer Asian male Black male, 16 years old Exonerated 2001
Kenneth Ayala Police Officer Hispanic male Black male, 36 years old Exonerated 2001
Orin Cox Police Officer Black male White male, 49 years old Exonerated 2001
Marianela Tejada Police Officer Hispanic female Black female, 39 years old Unsubstantiated 2000
Edward Colucci Police Officer White male Hispanic male, 34 years old Unsubstantiated 2000
Howard Shank Detective White male Hispanic male, 17 years old Unsubstantiated 2000
Guy Napoli Police Officer White male Hispanic male, 13 years old Exonerated 2000
Kevin Gallagher Sergeant White male Black female, 27 years old Exonerated 2000
John Trotta Lieutenant White male Black male, 53 years old Exonerated 2000
John Trotta Lieutenant White male White female, 42 years old Exonerated 2000
Herawattie Jeeuth Police Officer Asian female Black male, 15 years old Substantiated (Command Discipline) 2000
Anna Serrano Police Officer Hispanic female Not available Exonerated 2000
Alejandro Rivas Police Officer Hispanic male Black male, 21 years old Exonerated 2000
Douglas Lansing Detective White male Black male, 27 years old Substantiated (Command Discipline) 2000
Thomas Schick Police Officer White male Black male, 42 years old Exonerated 2000
Cyress Smith Police Officer Black male Black female, 49 years old Substantiated (Instructions) 2000
Anthony Quagliariello Detective White male Hispanic male, 35 years old Exonerated 1999
Joseph Albertini Police Officer White male Black male, 21 years old Substantiated (Charges) 1999
Brian Mullen Police Officer White male Unknown male, 44 years old Unsubstantiated 1999
William Seligson Police Officer White male Not available Substantiated (Charges) 1998
Anthony Murray Police Officer White male Not available Substantiated (Charges) 1998
Johnny Orellana Police Officer Hispanic male Not available Unsubstantiated 1998
Shawn Gallagher Police Officer White male Not available Exonerated 1998
Douglas Lansing Police Officer White male Not available Exonerated 1998
Steven Green Police Officer White male Not available Unsubstantiated 1998
Anthony Contessa Police Officer White male Not available Exonerated 1998
Joseph Mineo Police Officer White male Not available Exonerated 1998
James Dennedy Police Officer White male Not available Exonerated 1998
William Dunn Police Officer White male Not available Exonerated 1998
Joseph Hayes Police Officer White male Not available Unsubstantiated 1998
Patrick Hennessy Police Officer White male Not available Substantiated (Command Discipline) 1997
Gary Messina Lieutenant White male Not available Unsubstantiated 1997
Matthew Lamendola Police Officer White male Not available Unsubstantiated 1997
Gary Messina Lieutenant White male Not available Unsubstantiated 1997
Gary Messina Lieutenant White male Not available Unsubstantiated 1997
Joseph Grogan Sergeant White male Not available Exonerated 1997
Gary Messina Lieutenant White male Not available Unsubstantiated 1997
James Mccarthy Sergeant White male Not available Unsubstantiated 1997
Richard Warner Police Officer White male Not available Exonerated 1997
Anthony Quagliariello Detective White male Not available Substantiated (Charges) 1996
Kevin Maloney Police Officer White male Not available Unsubstantiated 1996
William Sciara Police Officer White male Not available Substantiated (Instructions) 1996
Matthew Lamendola Police Officer White male Not available Unsubstantiated 1996
Michael Howery Police Officer White male Not available Substantiated (Command Discipline) 1996
Thomas Cerbone Police Officer White male Not available Substantiated (No Recommendations) 1996
Jeffrey Maddrey Police Officer Black male Not available Substantiated (No Recommendations) 1995
Gary Messina Lieutenant White male Not available Exonerated 1995
Aubrey Henry Police Officer Black male Not available Exonerated 1995
Christophe Lagrasta Police Officer White male Not available Exonerated 1995
About This Data
For decades, disciplinary records of police officers in New York have been shielded from public view. After the state recently repealed the law that had kept the records secret, ProPublica requested and received a database from New York City’s Civilian Complaint Review Board, which investigates allegations of misconduct against NYPD officers. The database lists the name of each officer, the race of the complainant and the officer, a category describing the alleged misconduct, and whether the CCRB concluded the officers’ conduct violated NYPD rules. Police unions have opposed New York City’s plan to make public data about disciplinary investigations.

This database names about 4,000 of the NYPD’s 36,000 active-duty officers. Every officer in the database has had at least one substantiated allegation. We excluded any allegations that CCRB investigators concluded did not occur and were deemed unfounded. We also removed a small number of officers (62) against whom the CCRB had substantiated allegations, but whose substantiated allegations had not gone fully through the NYPD’s administrative prosecution process. The CCRB was not able to reach conclusions in many cases, in part because the investigators must rely on the NYPD to hand over crucial evidence, such as footage from body-worn cameras. Often, the department is not forthcoming despite a legal duty to cooperate in CCRB investigations. The CCRB gets thousands of complaints per year but substantiates a tiny fraction of them. Allegations of criminal conduct by officers are typically investigated not by the CCRB but by state or federal prosecutors in conjunction with the NYPD’s Internal Affairs Bureau or the FBI. The NYPD’s own findings in cases in this database are not included here.

Read more about what we’ve included in the database and why, and see our answers to questions we have received about this data. If you have information about any of these officers or cases, please fill out our form.

All of the records in this data are from closed cases. But if you see an error, contact the CCRB. If the agency updates its records and lets us know, we'll do so as well.

The data used in this database is downloadable from ProPublica’s Data Store.

Source
This data was obtained through a records request made to the CCRB. It includes fully investigated allegations only for officers who were members of the department as of late June 2020 and against whom the CCRB has substantiated at least one allegation.
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