By Matthew Futterman, Staff Reporter
While community activists, political leaders and law-enforcement officials brace themselves for investigations into allegations of police brutality in the South Bronx, District Attorney Robert Johnson is remaining focused on what he knows best -- the law, the facts and the evidence.
"A bad cop is like any other criminal," Johnson said, in an interview last week at his 161st Street office. "They've got a motive and they feel like they're not going to get caught."
With uniformed officers making more arrests and taking a more aggressive approach toward law enforcement, complaints of police brutality in the city have risen more than 37 percent in the last year, according to the Civilian Complaint Review Board.
Elected officials and community activists, including City Councilman Jose Rivera and the Rev. Ruben Diaz, are worried that a rise in allegations against the police and news of an ongoing investigation into police corruption at Tremont's 48th Precinct could erode the public's confidence in its police force and the criminal justice system.
Nevertheless Johnson, who eventually must decide whether to prosecute anyone, said the community's mistrust of law enforcement has been exaggerated by the media.
"The working-class community is still looking to the police for protection," he said. "That segment is still very trusting. We have a good foundation with community policing, and I've seen a real dialogue develop within the precinct community councils."
Johnson also said criminals were attempting to use allegations of police brutality to fight the aggressive policing ushered in by Police Commissioner William Bratton in the last year. Johnson explained that aggressive policing and police brutality do not necessarily go hand-in-hand.
"What I've sensed is a real responsible approach," Johnson said of the community's response to the allegations. "The Civilian Complaint Review Board is holding hearings. That's not saying `We don't trust you. We're just taking a look to see what's going on.' "
The review board hearing will take place Wednesday at 7 p.m. in the auditorium of Lincoln Hospital, 234 E. 149th St.
Taking that look at police activity, however, has become increasingly difficult. According to the �MDUL�New York Times,�MDNM� patrol officers and their union, the Patrolman's Benevolent Association, have warned specific members of the force about investigations by the department's Internal Affairs Bureau and the district attorney, making it difficult to gather evidence.
Johnson said he isn't concerned that he will have to side with either his law-enforcement colleagues on the police force or the people who have supported him during his six years as district attorney.
"The best way to do this job is to focus on the law and the evidence," Johnson said. "And people accept that as long as you have the facts and the law to back you up."
If Gov. George Pataki and the legislature have their way, the law will soon include a provision allowing prosecutors to seek the death penalty for the first time in 20 years. The governor and legislators agreed last week to approximately 10 types of homicide -- including serial murders, contract killings and death by torture -- that will be punishable by lethal injection. The deal also requires periodic studies to make sure the death penalty is handed out evenly.
If abused, the death penalty could further isolate officers from the mostly black and Latino neighborhoods they serve. Studies by groups supporting civil rights and civil liberties have shown that minority defendants are more likely to receive capital punishment.
Johnson, the state's only African-American district attorney, expressed his concerns about the death penalty's effectiveness as a deterrent and its often random application in cases against minorities. He said he would seek the death penalty only if all of his concerns were addressed.
Robert Morgenthau, Manhattan's DA, has declared his opposition to the death penalty.
"There are a lot of problems with it," Johnson said of the death penalty. "I'm afraid it's just not going to be the panacea that some people think it is."