ALBANY, NY – A recent study carried out by an Albany-based nonprofit alongside the New York Times reportedly found that disciplinary action regarding instances of serious misconduct within the New York State Police oftentimes results in either “lenient or unpredictable” outcomes.
When it comes to policing, the profession requires a certain level of integrity due to the immense powers endowed upon those who wear the uniform. As such, when law enforcement officers run afoul of said required integrity or standards, there’s an expectation from the public that those matters will be addressed appropriately and consistently.
However, New York Times (NYT) reporter Sammy Sussman, alongside a team of fellow investigators reviewing the New York State Police’s internal files between 2014 through 2024, found that similar instances of misconduct within the agency can wield some wildly different disciplinary outcomes.
Sussmann recounted two disciplinary instances involving troopers who were “caught having sex” while they were reportedly supposed to be on duty, with one trooper being suspended for eight days while the other suspended for 90 days. Most peculiar regarding the trooper who’d only received an eight-day suspension is that the individual “had previously been caught taking photos of his genitalia while on duty in uniform,” according to Sussman.
“The agency doesn't have a clear disciplinary checklist or a disciplinary matrix that might dictate that if you commit a given misconduct, you should get this punishment,” Sussman stated.
“And because of that, we see that there are a lot of officers who've committed seemingly egregious misconduct who have stayed on the force compared to other agencies.”
The NYT reporter pointed to the NYPD as an example where there are clear disciplinary matrixes regarding cases like the aforementioned troopers who received disparate ramifications for their actions, stating, “They have a public disciplinary matrix that says if you commit sexual misconduct while on duty, you will face termination.”
Apparently, the New York State Police have faced calls to create a clear disciplinary system since 2025 due to such disparities in years past, according to Sussman, saying both state and agency officials “said that what we see in these records does not reflect how the agency functions today,” while adding “the current administration takes these issues very seriously.”
Another concerning case reviewed by Sussman’s team involved an investigator with the New York State Police who reportedly attempted to “intervene in local traffic courts to help his friend get special treatment,” as the individual at the center of the traffic court debacle had allegedly sent nude photos to the investigator in exchange for leniency.
According to Sussman, that investigator was suspended for two weeks, further saying, “Most experts in policing that I talk to say that that's something that should immediately disqualify someone from ever working law enforcement.”
“The fact that that officer faced a brief two week suspension and is back on the job really speaks to a culture where some officers are being punished severely and held to a high standard, but others might not be,” Sussman concluded.
When it comes to policing, the profession requires a certain level of integrity due to the immense powers endowed upon those who wear the uniform. As such, when law enforcement officers run afoul of said required integrity or standards, there’s an expectation from the public that those matters will be addressed appropriately and consistently.
However, New York Times (NYT) reporter Sammy Sussman, alongside a team of fellow investigators reviewing the New York State Police’s internal files between 2014 through 2024, found that similar instances of misconduct within the agency can wield some wildly different disciplinary outcomes.
Sussmann recounted two disciplinary instances involving troopers who were “caught having sex” while they were reportedly supposed to be on duty, with one trooper being suspended for eight days while the other suspended for 90 days. Most peculiar regarding the trooper who’d only received an eight-day suspension is that the individual “had previously been caught taking photos of his genitalia while on duty in uniform,” according to Sussman.
“The agency doesn't have a clear disciplinary checklist or a disciplinary matrix that might dictate that if you commit a given misconduct, you should get this punishment,” Sussman stated.
“And because of that, we see that there are a lot of officers who've committed seemingly egregious misconduct who have stayed on the force compared to other agencies.”
The NYT reporter pointed to the NYPD as an example where there are clear disciplinary matrixes regarding cases like the aforementioned troopers who received disparate ramifications for their actions, stating, “They have a public disciplinary matrix that says if you commit sexual misconduct while on duty, you will face termination.”
Apparently, the New York State Police have faced calls to create a clear disciplinary system since 2025 due to such disparities in years past, according to Sussman, saying both state and agency officials “said that what we see in these records does not reflect how the agency functions today,” while adding “the current administration takes these issues very seriously.”
Another concerning case reviewed by Sussman’s team involved an investigator with the New York State Police who reportedly attempted to “intervene in local traffic courts to help his friend get special treatment,” as the individual at the center of the traffic court debacle had allegedly sent nude photos to the investigator in exchange for leniency.
According to Sussman, that investigator was suspended for two weeks, further saying, “Most experts in policing that I talk to say that that's something that should immediately disqualify someone from ever working law enforcement.”
“The fact that that officer faced a brief two week suspension and is back on the job really speaks to a culture where some officers are being punished severely and held to a high standard, but others might not be,” Sussman concluded.
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