A recent article in the New York Law Journal reported that the NYPD Department Advocate’s Office is now “civilianized”. The Department Advocate’s Office, which prosecutes officers in courtroom hearing before administrative law judges, is now composed of veteran litigators recruited primarily from the offices of district attorneys and the Legal Aid Society.

 Traditionally, the advocate’s office has been staffed by police officers straight out of law school. In 2005, Commissioner Raymond Kelley hired Julie Schwartz, former chief of the Sex Crimes and Special Victims Bureau at the Brooklyn District Attorney’s office, to alter the public perception of the advocate’s office. Ms. Schwartz’ aim was to “professionalize” the advocate’s office as a legal agency.

 This effort to bring credibility to the department has given way to a plethora of benefits to the parties involved. Officer-lawyers pursuing criminal charges against fellow police officers were commonly referred to as “rats” and most officers did not desire the position of a rat. Now, with the shift to civilian attorneys, more police officers are back out on patrol. A handful of the 25 lawyers under Ms. Schwartz command are uniformed police officers but these individuals do not have caseloads nor do they try cases.

 Positive statistics show prove an “improvement of the quality of service” provided by the civilian lawyers. In the past three years, since Ms. Schwartz’ reform, trials have gone down and negotiations have gone up. This means that the NYPD advocate’s office is being more careful about what they bring to trial. Also, fewer dismissals mean more credibility with the public and fewer cases brought to trial mean less unnecessary anxiety for police officers.

 Read entire article here.