The former chief of police for Suffolk County will face at least 41 months in prison for violating the civil rights of a man as well as orchestrating an elaborate cover-up. Pleading guilty today, James Burke, 51, said, "I and others did knowingly and intentionally conspire and took affirmative steps to obstruct, including conspiring with other participants not to cooperate with the investigation, so that the grand jury and the U.S. attorney’s office would not find out the true events of December 14, 2012."
On that December night, Christopher Loeb was arrested by Suffolk County cops for violating his probation. The cops found property stolen from numerous cars—including things taken from Burke's own county-issued SUV. The feds said the objects removed from Burke included "his gun belt, several magazines of ammunition, a box of cigars, a humidor, and a canvas bag that contained toiletries, clothing, and other items"—and those "other items" were pornography and sex toys. Burke was apparently allowed to remove his own items from Loeb's house as the search was underway.
When Loeb was taken in for questioning, he was handcuffed to a table in an interrogation room, and Burke, federal prosecutors say, "allegedly punched and kicked Loeb in the head and body." Burke also allegedly referenced Loeb's heroin addiction by threatening to kill him by making sure he got a "hot shot."
Then, realizing that the police department was being investigated for violating Loeb's civil rights, Burke told his officers to lie about what had happened.
U.S Attorney Robert Capers said, "The defendant violated his oath and responsibilities as a law enforcement officer by exacting personal vengeance, assaulting a handcuffed suspect, and abusing his authority as the highest ranking uniformed member of the Suffolk County Police Department. Despite the efforts of the defendant and his co-conspirators to obstruct the federal investigation, he has been brought to justice. Our investigation is ongoing, and we will seek to hold accountable anyone who violates another’s civil rights or attempts to obstruct justice."
Burke's lawyer said, "It’s a sad day for him, a tough day for him, after being with the police department for 31 years. Mr. Burke realizes he made a terrible mistake here and he is owning up to it."
