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发帖数: 29846 | 1 By Rebecca Davis O’Brien
Updated Jan. 29, 2015 9:52 p.m. ET
Staff members at a Bronx public-defenders organization took part in a rap
video advocating the killing of police officers and later attempted to
mislead city officials about the organization’s involvement, according to
the New York City Department of Investigation.
In a report released Thursday, the DOI said two staff attorneys at the Bronx
Defenders—a nonprofit group that receives public funds for its advocacy
and legal representation for indigent defendants—appeared in a video called
“Hands Up,” in which men are shown pointing a gun at an individual
portraying an officer.
The two lawyers had encouraged the organization to participate in the music
video after being approached by the company producing the video, according
to the report.
A screenshot shows Ryan Napoli (left) and Kumar Rao, staff attorneys at
Bronx Defenders, in a rap video titled "Hands Up." ENLARGE
A screenshot shows Ryan Napoli (left) and Kumar Rao, staff attorneys at
Bronx Defenders, in a rap video titled "Hands Up."
The Bronx Defenders’ offices appear in the video and its name appeared as a
sponsor in the credits in an earlier version of the video, city officials
said.
The video for “Hands Up,” by artists Uncle Murda, Maino and Jay Watts, was
released on YouTube and WorldStarHipHop in early December and continues to
be available on those platforms.
The report alleges “serious misconduct” by the two lawyers and “gross
mismanagement” by the Bronx Defenders’ executive director, Robin Steinberg
, who the report said didn’t discipline the two attorneys and sent “
misleading letters” about the video to city officials.
Staff members later told investigators that they didn’t know the video
would depict or endorse anti-police violence, according to the report,
signed by Mark Peters , commissioner of the Department of Investigation.
Ms. Steinberg couldn’t be reached for comment.
The report identified the staff attorneys as Kumar Rao, who also served as a
spokesman for the organization, and Ryan Napoli, a supervising attorney and
team leader. Neither could be reached for comment.
In a statement on its website Thursday, The Bronx Defenders said the group
“abhors the use of violence against the police under any circumstance,”
adding: “The Bronx Defenders never approved the music video ‘Hands Up,’
and never saw it before it went online. We deeply regret any involvement in
the video.”
In a statement on its website Monday, the group said, “The video was
released without the Bronx Defenders authorization or approval. Since the
video’s release, we have made numerous attempts through our attorneys to
have the video taken down.”
According to the report, Messrs. Napoli and Rao told investigators they
thought the organization would be able to edit the video before its release.
Ms. Steinberg told investigators she had been told the video “addressed
the issue of police brutality in low-income communities,” but didn’t know
about the song’s explicit message.
The video shows footage of violent encounters between police and black
civilians. Messrs. Rao and Napoli appear inside The Bronx Defenders’ office
, with Mr. Rao appearing to console a tearful woman.
In the days after the video’s release, emails between Ms. Steinberg and
various city and court officials reviewed by the DOI didn’t fully describe
the extent of the Bronx Defenders’ involvement in the video, according to
the report.
Mayor Bill de Blasio called the DOI’s findings “deeply disturbing,” and
asked the Bronx Defenders to “take immediate action in response to the
findings of DOI. Unless those actions are fully responsive to the serious
issues raised here, the City will take all legal and contractual actions
available to it.”
The Bronx Defenders has two contracts with the city that provide for about $
20 million in annual funding, the majority of the organization’s financial
support, the report says.
In a letter Thursday to the chairman of the group’s board of directors, the
city gave the Bronx Defenders until next Wednesday to provide a “detailed
plan of action” to address the issues in the report.
“The actions of your employees and the Executive Director have put in
jeopardy the effectiveness of the services that they are obliged to deliver
to indigent clients in the city,” Elizabeth Glazer, director of the Mayor’
s Office of Criminal Justice, wrote.
Bronx Defenders Chairman Earl Ward, of law firm Emery Celli Brinckerhoff &
Abady, couldn’t be reached for comment.
Bronx District Attorney Robert Johnson also denounced the video. “There is
no place in our profession for expressions like those in this video,” Mr.
Johnson said in a statement. “Even more appalling, they come from a city-
funded organization.”
The Patrolmen’s Benevolent Association, which represents police officers,
asked the city to shut down the Bronx Defenders and disbar the lawyers
involved. |
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