Opinion ID: 2782334
Heading Depth: 2
Heading Rank: 2

Heading: Matthews’s Employment Duties

Text: Matthews stated in an affidavit that the vast majority of his time as a police officer is spent: (1) going on radio runs, which are responses to 911 calls in the precinct, in addition to ‘311’ requests, and requests that come through the station house telephone switchboard, (2) patrolling the streets and vertical patrolling of local housing, (3) filling out complaint reports and additional forms relating to criminal activity, lost property, and missing persons, including interviewing witnesses, (4) responding to traffic accidents, (5) transporting prisoners to and from the precinct house, courts, and hospitals, and (6) doing community visits with local businesses and organizations. Joint App’x 91‐92. Matthews’s duties are formally defined by the NYPD Patrol Guide, which was created to serve as a “guide for ALL members of the service,” although it does not “contain distinct 6 instructions for every situation that may be encountered in the field.” Foreword, Patrol Guide, Joint App’x 410. Section 207‐21 of the Patrol Guide, titled “Allegations of Corruption and Other Misconduct Against Members of the Service,” states that: All members of the service must be incorruptible. An honest member of the service will not tolerate members of the service who engage in corruption or other misconduct. All members of the service have an absolute duty to report any corruption or other misconduct, or allegation of corruption or other misconduct, of which they become aware. Joint App’x 36. The Patrol Guide defines corruption and other misconduct as, “[c]riminal activity or other misconduct of any kind including the use of excessive force or perjury that is committed by a member of the service whether on or off duty.” Id. It also outlines a procedure for officers to report misconduct to the Internal Affairs Bureau and provides that the “[f]ailure to report corruption, other misconduct, or allegations of such act is, in itself, an offense of serious misconduct and will be charged as such.” Id. at 37. Commissioner John Beirne, Deputy Commissioner for Labor Relations for the NYPD, testified at deposition that a quota system alone is not misconduct but that a quota system that results in an 7 unjustified stop, an unjustified arrest, an unjustified summons, or an adverse employment action is misconduct that must be reported. Matthews testified that the Patrol Guide does not obligate him to report the existence of a quota system and that he would only have a duty to report misconduct that violated the penal law. It is undisputed that Matthews did not regularly meet with or report to Captains Bugge or Bloch. Commissioner Beirne, Captain Bloch, and Captain Bugge testified that an officer has no duty to monitor the conduct of his or her supervisors.