{"id":20839,"date":"2016-02-27T22:41:18","date_gmt":"2016-02-28T06:41:18","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/cjnotebook.com\/?p=20839"},"modified":"2016-02-27T22:46:32","modified_gmt":"2016-02-28T06:46:32","slug":"20839-2","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/cjnotebook.com\/?p=20839","title":{"rendered":"Ex-Police Chief Who Punched and Kicked handcuffed Suspect in the Head Pleads Guilty to Civil Rights Violation"},"content":{"rendered":"

\u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0NEW YORK<\/span><\/strong><\/p>\n

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A former Suffolk County police chief admitted to punching and kicking a suspect in the head while the suspect was chained and handcuffed while being interrogated by detectives at the police station, according to authorities.<\/span><\/p>\n

On Friday at a federal courthouse, \u00a051-year-old James Burke<\/strong>, the former police chief plead guilty to a civil rights violation and conspiracy to obstruct justice, officials said.<\/span><\/p>\n

Following that assault, over almost three years, Burke, of Smithtown, New York, and other Suffolk County law enforcement authorities took actions to obstruct the federal civil rights investigation into the assault, according to officials.<\/span><\/p>\n

Burke was arrested and arraigned on December 9, 2015, and he has been in federal custody since that date.<\/span><\/p>\n

FBI Assistant Director-in-Charge Diego Rodriguez<\/strong> stated: \u00a0\u201cAn honest government, trusted by the people, is imperative to protect our freedoms.\u00a0 For these reasons, combating public corruption is the top criminal priority of the FBI.\u00a0 In his guilty plea today, Burke has taken responsibility for his illegal conduct. \u00a0This begins the restoration of the public\u2019s trust in the Suffolk County Police Department\u2019s ability to protect their Constitutional freedoms.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

According to the indictment and court filings, on December 14, 2012, New York State Probation Department<\/strong> and Suffolk County Police Department<\/strong>\u00a0officers arrested probationer Christopher Loeb<\/strong> at his mother\u2019s home in Smithtown, New York, for a variety of probation violations.<\/span><\/p>\n

During the arrest and search of the Loeb residence, officers discovered a large cache of merchandise stolen from over a dozen vehicles, including an police department-issued SUV operated by Burke.<\/span><\/p>\n

Among the items taken from Burke\u2019s SUV was his gun belt, several magazines of ammunition, a box of cigars, a humidor, and a canvas bag that contained toiletries, clothing, porn, sex toys and other items.<\/span><\/p>\n

\"Former<\/a>Burke was permitted to enter the Loeb residence and retrieve the canvas bag and several other articles, even as the search was underway. He then drove to the Suffolk County\u2019s Police Department\u2019s Fourth Precinct in Smithtown where detectives had begun interrogating Loeb.<\/span><\/p>\n

Burke entered the interrogation room where Loeb was handcuffed and chained to an eyebolt fastened to the floor. Burke then allegedly punched and kicked Loeb in the head and body.<\/span><\/p>\n

Subsequently, Burke and others allegedly pressured the detectives who witnessed the assault to conceal the event. Those efforts continued even after the FBI and the U.S. Attorney\u2019s Office opened an investigation of the assault in May 2013.<\/span><\/p>\n

In one instance, Burke summoned detectives under his command to SCPD headquarters in Yaphank, New York, to persuade the detectives to agree on a false version of events that would conceal the assault.<\/span><\/p>\n

In October 2013, one of those detectives allegedly testified falsely under oath in a state pretrial hearing in the Loeb prosecution, denying that Loeb had been assaulted.<\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cThe defendant violated his oath and responsibilities as a law enforcement officer by exacting personal vengeance, assaulting a handcuffed suspect, and abusing his authority as the highest ranking uniformed member of the Suffolk County Police Department.\u00a0 Despite the efforts of the defendant and his co-conspirators to obstruct the federal investigation, he has been brought to justice,\u201d stated U.S. Attorney Robert L. Capers.\u00a0<\/strong> \u201cOur investigation is ongoing, and we will seek to hold accountable anyone who violates another\u2019s civil rights or attempts to obstruct justice.\u201d<\/span>
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