More Local News to Love Start today for 50% off Expires 3/6/23. Though he mentioned no names in the video, one incident Roca referred to occurred in September 2011, when police Sgt. Use our free directory to instantly connect with verified Police Misconduct attorneys. '"; Holyoke police officers arrived at the mall just before 7:00 p.m. for a report of shots fired. var currentLocation = window.location; And cities where complaints of police misconduct are rarely ruled in favor of civilians could benefit from creating an oversight structure to independently investigate these complaints. During the mayoral campaign, Garcias opponent, At-large City Councilor Michael Sullivan, responded to the Gazettes reporting by calling for an audit of the police departments handling of state and federal grant programs, calling the use of overtime excessive. Garcia responded to say that he, too, would support an audit. Febo, who plans to retire in July, said he has nothing to hide. | Danielle Eatondeaton@thereminder.com, An officer with the Holyoke Police Deparment recently released a YouTube video, which contained allegations of corruption within the department.Reminder Publishing photo by Danielle Eaton. But some will be missing, Mass. The classic response to demonstrated police corruption Step 1: Shoot the messenger. We definitely had examples of moments where we felt we were treated differently because of our activism and there was an underlying tone of retaliation.. Listen Thats according to William Terrill, a professor at Arizona State University's School of Criminology and Criminal Justice. In this still from a video Roca posted to YouTube on March 7, 2021, Roca alleges there is corruption and racism in the Holyoke Police Department. He said that he saved the state troopers life, only to be treated like a piece of crap afterward, getting turned down for a job with the state police. He saidthat ultimately there was sufficient cause to terminate Roca. The five-year Holyoke Police officer who posted the video, Rafael Roca, explained in the beginning, that he wanted to "expose the corruption and the lies and the injustice" he felt was taking place within the department. Cannabis company Trulieve will pay $14,502 after reaching a settlement with the Occupational Safety and Health Administration over the death of an employee who worked at Trulieve's Holyoke cultivation site. Some complaints involve allegations that police officers broke the law. Im very confident that something is going to come of it, he said. Uploaded By Greenpalace1. As of March 9, Roca has been suspended from the department due to his violation of a rule prohibiting officers from criticizing the department on social media platforms. When the state Legislature passed its police reform bill, state Senate President Karen E. Spilka, D-Ashland, described the legislation as a necessary first step towards achieving systemic change through law enforcement accountability and transparency.. Massachusetts officer alleges corruption within department Project Advances, What Happened to the Money?' Instead of arresting the driver, Monsalve, one of a number of officers who responded, decided to park the drivers car and give him a ride back home. Holyoke Police Chief Manny Febo fact-checks allegations in suspended var currentheadline = document.getElementById("headline").innerText; Holyoke CO Police Brutality Lawyers - Police Brutality Lawyers Pictured above: thumbnail of the Youtube video posted by Holyoke police officer Rafael Roca. Police officer placed on leave, alleges corruption within department Similarrecords from the Northampton Police Department, for example, show that of the 90 times an officer faced a civilian complaint from 2010 and 2020, department superiors only disciplined officers nine times. Community Rules apply to all content you upload or otherwise submit to this site. //LBtag_id.innerHTML = ' Buy this Image'; (AP) - A Massachusetts police officer who posted a video online alleging corruption within his department says he has been placed on paid administrative leave after refusing to take . Coughlin has been living large on his State Police pension of $131,961 a year. Current Police Chief David Pratt suspended Roca in March and then recommended that the mayor terminate Roca. Schedule a Free Consultation Fill out your information below: Law Offices of Allyn & Ball, P.C. Mayor Joshua Garcia also declined to sit down for an interview with NEPM. Roca said he did speak to both the attorney generals office and FBI at the same time, but that there was no subsequent follow-up from them. They took my gun and my badge and kicked me out of the email system, Roca said during an interview at the time. More Local News to Love Start today for 50% off Expires 3/6/23, Holyoke Police Officer Rafael Roca suspended after posting viral video alleging corruption at the department, Because of this video I will probably be fired: Holyoke officer alleges police corruption in viral video, Holyokes fiscal future appears bright as Joshua Garcia enters office. I did exactly what I was trained and paid to do but people on my watch had a problem with that because they like to sleep in their cruisers overnight; they dont want to work.. I stand by the integrity of the men and women of the Holyoke Police Department and I welcome any outside agency that would like to look into any of the alleged allegations from the video, he said in a statement. I kept yelling that they were violating our rights and they continued to search my vehicle against my will. Rafael Roca, a former US Marine who became a Holyoke, MA police officer in 2016, released this 43-minute video on Sunday exposing the corruption in his department. He was also advised that he is not to respond to his own complaints while off duty., Lastly, Febo responded to Rocas claim that minority officers are not given opportunities for specialized assignments. Subscribe Today, Amherst Police Chief Livingstone stepping down in May, Unions: UMass putting 100 jobs in jeopardy with privatization plan, Murdaughs fall from grace ends in life sentence for murder, Biden leaving room to change his mind on reelection. license. Sgts. HOLYOKE, Mass. SCREENSHOT/YOUTUBE Roca said he expected to face discipline after posting the video but was invested in calling attention to what he saw as problems within the department. The mayor of Holyoke, Massachusetts has appointed a new police chief who will be the first Latino to lead the department. This story is a production of the New England News Collaborative. ", He calls outgoing Police Chief Manny Febo "corrupt," contending minorities are routinely passed over for upper-tier assignments and disciplined at higher rates. Holyoke police officer Rafael Roca alleges there iscorruption and racism in the Holyoke Police Department. That outcome police officers facing no discipline after a civilian alleges wrongdoing is hardly unique to Concepcions case. If youre in the police department, you have to obey orders.. The youths, Reyes report alleged, were Blood gang members who were under surveillance for their possible involvement in a shooting involving a school bus on the previous day. He said the cars possibly armed occupants made furtive movements and refused to show their hands, and that the officers on scene denied making the remarks Concepcion alleged. Taken from that vehicle was two ballistic vests with two magazines in the pouches, along with some K9 gear, and a first aid bag. tag_id.innerHTML = ' Buy this Image'; Massachusetts Officer Alleges Corruption Within Department Roca said that the department is rife with racism. Following Rocas allegations, the Gazette obtained and analyzed Holyoke Police Department records tracking overtime pay and hours. Nobody should get away with taking the law into their own hands and being above it, he said. Roca said a police captain called him about a day after he posted the video. They took my gun and my badge and kicked me out of the email system, Roca told Masslive.com on Monday. He also called for the FBI or the state attorney generals office to investigate the department. Reyes, the HPD captain who oversees internal investigations, said in his final report that the boy had let his twin brother and another student back into the building after they were suspended a major breach of security because of shootings and gang activity in the community. Whos policing the police? he asked. HOLYOKE, Mass. HOLYOKE Two days after a Holyoke Police Officer posted a viral YouTube video accusing his own department of corruption and racism, Police Chief Manny Febo has clapped back. Roca also told the newspaper he plans to file a lawsuit over how he was treated. A member of the Democratic Party, he was elected the youngest mayor of Holyoke at age 22. Two officers did respond to say that department policies prohibit them from speaking to the press without permission from higher-ups. Febo addresses the allegation that minority officers are not given opportunity for specialized assignments, as Roca said in his video that minorities are underrepresented in specialized positions. Isaac Holyoke, director of communications at CleanSpark, said the shift made it easier for employees to communicate with each other and that employees value "autonomy and flexibility." "People are used to being at home when they can go on business when they need to, and we have kept that culture here in the office," Holyoke said. Ill probably lose my job, but Im good. All rights reserved, FIRST ALERT: Storm Hitting Greater Boston Live Radar, Updates. Roca had argued that the citys social media policy illegally infringed on his First Amendment rights, and that his statements were true and therefore were not defamatory. That is roughly 75 percent of minority officers with eight years or more in specialized assignments, he said. license except where otherwise noted. The father said in his complaint that his boys had been through a lot of trauma made worse by now living in a homeless shelter, and that as a result they didnt always react to what they were told to do. With that said, I will not be commenting on the internal personnel matter that is ongoing.. The handwritten log, which tracks civilian and internal complaints against officers and their conclusions, features two entries for Roca. "We cannot expect people to have respect for law and order until we teach respect to those we Growing up Puerto Rican in the Flats neighborhood of Holyoke one of the citys majority-Hispanic lower wards Maldonado Velez said he heard plenty of stories from those whom that system harmed. He said minority candidates get passed over for top positions, as detectives or supervisors. Roca mentioned the incident in his video over the weekend. Because when you speak up and you expose corruption, he said in the video, thats what they do.. var sellablestring3 = "STAFF FILE PHOTO"; In the almost 45-minute video, Roca recounted favoritism, covering up lost and stolen weapons and other instances of corruption. All rights reserved (About Us). Roca also said that other officers have not been fired after breaking the law driving drunk, for example losing firearms and other misconduct. Lorna McMurrey, 27, was filling . I stand behind the video and what I said in it.. He was reelected three times, with his final term expiring in January 2022. I think the challenge with that is in most jurisdictions that have a civilian review board or some version of that, its very rare for that board to have investigatory powers, Terrill said. Graduated from 36th Massachusetts Police Officer . He said the promoted individual allegedly lost two weapons as an officer. He went on to say that one weapon had allegedly been lost and another had been stolen from the officers home, an incident which Roca claimed was covered up.. Holyoke Officer Rafael Roca, a former Marine hired in 2016, said in the 43-minute video posted on YouTube that Chief Manny Febo is corrupt and plays favorites, and he argued that members of minority groups are passed over for plum assignments and that discipline is handed out selectively. In 1894 the New York State Senate launched the first comprehensive investigation of corruption in the NYPD. Holyoke Police Officer Rafael Roca suspended after posting viral video alleging corruption at the department 'Because of this video I will probably be fired': Holyoke officer alleges. He said he is disappointed with how city officials reacted to his allegations. Elizabeth Warren and Ed Markey, told NEPM that she filed the complaint because she wanted to push back against her constituents dominant perception: that there was no point in filing a complaint against the HPD. //var LBtag_id = document.getElementById('buylinkLBRocaHolyokeFiring-hg-111721,ph2'); I stand by the integrity of the men and women of the Holyoke Police Department and I welcome any outside agency that would like to look into any of the alleged allegations from the video, he said in a statement. Iowa Police Chief arrested after selling black market military machine guns, "I'm a Cop" is a classic horror comic using real-life quotes from police departments, Transform your ideas into unique art with this CES-featured, AI art tool, now on sale for $49.99, Safely organize your devices and chargers with the CES-featured Bento Stack Charge 8000, Start your musical journey with the Populele Smart Ukulele, now only $159.99, Terms Roca said that he has only received one formal and one informal complaint during his five years on the force a claim that appears to be corroborated by an internal affairs log the Gazette has obtained through a public records request. designed to provide a means for us to earn fees by linking to Amazon.com and affiliated Our forum rules are detailed in the Community Guidelines. Theyre there to protect each other, to look out for each other, and to come out with force in our community. 2021 Get the latest news on COVID-19 delivered to you. They kept trying to use the grabbing of the genitals to kind of quiet me down as a form of punishment and pain, Concepcion said. He was deployed to Bosnia from 2003-2004 where he worked with anti-corruption and security forces. It should be known as Corrupt City," he said in the video. Holyoke Police Captain Matthew Moriarty told Western Mass News that Holyoke police officials responded to a report of gunfire on 136 Sargeant Street around 9 p.m. on Tuesday night. Holyoke police officer accuses department of corruption The police, for me, was used as a reminder to stay in my place. In his internal report on the incident, HPDs internal affairs officer, Manuel Reyes, said police pulled over Concepcion for a traffic violation. Months later, on Nov. 10, then acting mayor Terence Murphy followed Pratts recommendation, firing Roca after a city lawyer determined that there was just cause, the Gazette reported. An officer ripped his work ID off his neck, he alleged, throwing it to the ground and saying, F--- your program.. of 'Holyoke police officer Rafael Roca alleges there iscorruption and racism in the Holyoke Police Department. Position Type:Staff Full-time. We were unable to subscribe you to WBUR Today. Holyoke St. Patrick's Committee holds 67th Grand Video / Feb 18, 2023 / 10:41 PM EST The 70th annual Holyoke St. Patrick's Parade is now nearly a month away and at the Log Cabin Saturday . Law Offices of Allyn and Ball | Lawyers in MA and PA Areas of Practice Febo, who plans to retire in July, said he has nothing to hide. The city attorney suggested that under the circumstances the city was getting off easy. Holyoke Officer Rafael Roca, a former Marine hired in 2016, said in the 43-minute video posted on YouTube that Chief Manny Febo is "corrupt" and plays favorites, and he argued that members of minority groups are passed over for plum assignments and that discipline is handed out selectively. The Holyoke Police Department is working very hard to reduce crime and impact violence in this industrious Western Massachusetts city. Another was accused of sexual assault while he was off duty. On March 7, Holyoke police officer Rafael Roca posted a video on YouTube alleging racism and corruption by the Holyoke Police Department. Of those 18 officers, eight made more than $200,000. Holyoke officer suspended for viral video alleging corruption, racism Good Cop Predicts His Video Exposing Crimes in Dept Will Get Him Reserve Online Appointment for New LTC / Firearms' - TimeTap He said that currently, there were 46 total patrolmen with eight years or more of full-time experience on the job., Out of those 46, 12 are minority officers. March 15, Pages 17 Course Hero uses AI to attempt to automatically extract content from documents to surface to you and others so you can study better, e.g., in search results, to enrich docs, and more. var sellablestring3 = "STAFF FILE PHOTO"; As of March 9, Roca has been suspended from the department due to his violation of a rule prohibiting officers from criticizing the department on social media platforms. var sellablestring4 = "GAZETTE FILE PHOTO"; He was suspended for violating the departments social media policy, which prohibits officers from criticizing the department on social media platforms. We reenter the clubhouse, as we go back to the pool table the brother that just received the pot starts to brag about having a brother as a Holyoke police officer and that he gets stuff like pot and can make some money that way., In its investigation, the HPD found the allegations against Monfett not sustained because there was insufficient evidence to either prove or disprove the allegation.. A newly released independent audit of the Holyoke Police Department found the HPD poses a "substantial risk" to the city it serves. He went on to say that he had tried to sue, tried speaking with the supervisors, Ive tried my union, Ive tried it all. Roca said he hoped that the Commonwealth of Massachusetts Attorney General, along with the FBI, would open an investigation into the department. Becoming a police officer was his "life long dream" but that dream was "quickly affected" and "hurt" by the corruption and racism of police officers, which "goes back to as long as anyone can remember. Instead of being a man and admitting he made a mistake about seeing me with a firearm, he chose to remain silent and never appeared in court.. Office Location: 57 Suffolk St. Suite 200 Holyoke, MA 01040 Call Us Published: 11/16/2021 9:42:49 PM HOLYOKE Last week, the city's acting mayor fired a police officer who earlier this year posted a viral video on social media alleging corruption and. Hours per week:37.5 Weeks per year:52. Israelis protest legal overhaul plans for 9th week - WWLP Holyoke Police Department's 24 hour anonymous "TEXT-A-TIP" Dial CRIMES (533-TIPS or 533-8477). YouTubes privacy policy is available here and YouTubes terms of service is available here. He said cities would have to go all in to train civilians to do that work. He said: The chief saw your video and hes ordering you to take it down, Roca said. Within the department, he said he had been shamed. The material on this site may not be reproduced, distributed, transmitted, cached or otherwise used, except with the prior written permission of Reminders Publishing. "Yeah, they didn't waste any time. He also alleged gross negligence by Febo and his "favorites.". I am a Latino. After Customers Paid Large Deposits for Home Projects, Contractor Files for Bankruptcy, How Much Snow Has Fallen in Your Area So Far, The House Where JonBenet Ramsey Was Found Dead Is Listed for Sale at Nearly $7M, FIRST ALERT: Wintry Mix Keeps Falling as Storm Hits New England (Live Radar). NEPM has obtained a decades worth of civilian complaints against HPD officers and the departments own internal investigations of them. Murphy said in a phone interview Monday that he felt no pressure from anyone to terminate Roca before he left office. They took my gun and my badge and kicked me out of the email system," Roca said on Monday,according to MassLive. But for Concepcion, the man who alleged police abused their authority pulling him over in 2016, thats exactly the kind of work Holyoke and other cities should be doing. Holyoke Officer Rafael Roca, a former Marine hired in 2016, said in the 43-minute video posted on YouTube that Chief Manny Febo is "corrupt" and plays favorites, and he argued that members of. Carla Sinclair 11:00 am Tue Mar 9, 2021. }. Compare the best Police Misconduct lawyers near Holyoke, MA today. He attested that state troopers consistently call him to translate for them, as they do not have enough Spanish speakers on the force. In other words, having the power to question the suspect, having the power to question the officer.. Not a single person from City Hall or city government reached out at all, he said. NEPM also contacted all of the police officers mentioned in this story via email or phone. When Romero put his hand on the boys shoulder and told him to go back to his classroom, Reyes said the boy smacked the officer's hand and swore at him. He has since been suspended for refusing to take the video down. Jorge Monsalve. Asked on Monday what he thinks will happen to him after he spoke out against the department and other officers, Roca said he expects to be fired a possibility he mentioned in his video. The Hampden District Attorney's Office told NEPM it was unable to confirm this report or comment on it without more information, like the name of the defendant, which was redacted from the public records response. The material on this site may not be reproduced, distributed, transmitted, cached or otherwise used, except with the prior written permission of Advance Local. In his 2016 study in the journalPolice Quarterly, Terrill and fellow researcher Jason Ingram found that in cities that had police conducting internal investigations, but where an external civilian oversight agency reviewed their decisions, the department was "significantly more likely to sustain complaints." In January, Holyoke settled the police brutality suit against the city and officers for $65,000. If you purchase a product or register for an account through one of the links on our site, we may receive compensation. The Holyoke Police Department has a chief, two lieutenants and four sergeants who are minority in the department command staff., Use of and/or registration on any portion of this site constitutes acceptance of our. Holyoke Chief of Police responds to allegations of department He said when he spoke out against the alleged injustice, racism and favoritism and nepotism that he had witnessed, he was punished and shunned. Roca said his attempts to transfer to a different police department were allegedly sabotaged by the chief, and cited a single informal complaint made against him that he said ended with no investigation and him working in an administrative role for more than a month. The HPDs log of complaints and internal investigations contains no evidence the department ever opened an internal investigation into the incident. Holyoke Police Department Will Have First Latino Chief | WAMC Tagged: Holyoke, Rafael Roca, Holyoke Police Department, Manny Febo, YouTube, Ella White, Pioneer Valley, Italian professors departure would mean end of Italian major and minor programs, Students mobilize against the rise in tuition costs/tuition increase, Holyoke police officer suspended after alleging corruption. Rafael Roca, a former US Marine who became a Holyoke, MA police officer in 2016, released this 43-minute video on Sunday exposing the corruption in his . I stand behind the video and what I said in it.. Wheres my due process in that?. The man alleged that Leahy tackled him to the ground at 2 a.m. after he had left a club, put a gun to his head and told him to shut up when he asked what was going on. Here is the list of officers: Devon Bones, Holyoke Police Department. One is a female who is being trained to investigate sensitive crimes involving children, females and domestic violence. Holyoke officer who exposes police corruption in video gets suspended Academic studies have shown its fairly common for police departments to sustain a small percentage of civilian complaints. The rollout hasnot been smooth, with commissioners sparring overinternal rulesandavailable resources. A newly released independent audit of the Holyoke Police Department finds the HPD poses a "substantial risk" to the city it serves. 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