Gothamist
A non-profit newsroom, powered by WNYC.
Gothamist
Listen Live
News
Manhattan District Attorney vacates 188 cases tied to convicted cops
By
Verónica Del Valle
Published Nov 17, 2022
Modified Nov 17, 2022
Share
FacebookTwitterRedditEmail
Never miss a story
Email address
By submitting your information, you're agreeing to receive communications from New York Public Radio in accordance with our Terms .
Manhattan District Attorney's office
By
Verónica Del Valle
Published Nov 17, 2022
Modified Nov 17, 2022
Share
FacebookTwitterRedditEmail
We rely on your support to make local news available to all
Make your contribution now and help Gothamist thrive in 2026. Donate today
Gothamist is funded by sponsors and member donations
The Manhattan district attorney's office will throw out almost 200 misdemeanor convictions with ties to eight NYPD officers found guilty of crimes linked to their work.
District Attorney Alvin Bragg announced that his office would vacate 188 convictions on the grounds of due process violations following investigations from the newly created Post-Conviction Justice Unit.
"New Yorkers must know that everyone is acting with the utmost integrity in the pursuit of equal justice under the law," Bragg said in a statement released on Thursday. "Without that belief, our criminal justice system will never be able to deliver real and lasting safety that every community deserves."
Arrests for the vacated convictions happened between 2001 and 2016, according to the district attorney's office. The majority of people faced either fines or incarceration following their arrests.
Through the Post-Conviction Justice Unit, Bragg's office is reviewing more than 1,100 cases connected to a list of officers convicted of crimes related to their jobs as police officers. Those cases came to the office after public defenders and advocacy groups urged all of New York City's district attorneys to vacate convictions linked to officer misconduct last year.
The coalition identified 22 officers convicted of lying, corruption and other forms of wrongdoing. The majority no longer serve on the police force.
Bragg's office said all officers "played a material role in these convictions."
The Legal Aid Society, one member of the 2021 group, urged the city’s district attorneys to continue reviewing potentially wrongful convictions "on an ongoing basis and with full transparency" in response to Bragg's announcement.
"The mandate to do justice must include evaluating criminal conduct by law enforcement with the same lens that is used with every other New Yorker," said Elizabeth Felber, who heads the group's Wrongful Conviction Unit. **"**To do otherwise erodes the public's trust in law enforcement and the criminal legal system."
Felber, in particular, noted the destruction that convictions can wreak on people's lives, including "incarceration, hefty legal fees, loss of employment, housing instability, severed access to critical benefits and other collateral consequences."
Data released by the Prison Policy Initiative in 2022 shows that the joblessness rate among formerly incarcerated people greatly exceeds that of the general population. The group also found that people who have been imprisoned are about 10 times more likely to face homelessness than others in the U.S.
The headline of this story has been updated to reflect that Bragg's request was approved.
Tagged
corruption
nypd
Alvin Bragg
Verónica Del Valle
Read more
Gothamist is funded by sponsors and member donations
Gothamist is funded by sponsors and member donations
MORE news
Man shot and killed on Midtown subway platform Saturday afternoon, NYPD says
Police said they're searching for a person of interest.
By
Ryan Kost
Published Oct 17, 2026 at 1:16 p.m. ET
Modified Oct 17, 2026 at 3:19 p.m. ET
Have you seen this Yorkie? NYPD looking for adorable pup dognapped from her Queens home
Suspects were driving a Subaru Forester, police said.
By
Ryan Kost
News
Have you seen this Yorkie? NYPD looking for adorable pup dognapped from her Queens home
Suspects were driving a Subaru Forester, police said.
By
Ryan Kost
Being reigning champions is weird for Knicks fans, but we could get used to this.
By
Catalina Gonella
Tompkins Square Park is getting a makeover. Some say it's too much.
By
Willow Higgins
Deer are all over New Jersey roads looking for sex, state officials warn
By
Rosemary Misdary
Never miss a story
Catch up on the most important headlines with a roundup of essential NYC stories, delivered to your inbox daily.
Sign upEmail address
By submitting your information, you're agreeing to receive communications from New York Public Radio in accordance with our Terms .