Investigation of the Waterfront Commission of New York Harbor

Although new hires are granted the title “detective” with police powers in twostates, they need not possess prior law enforcement experience. In fact, many of the newhires are recent college graduates with no prior law enforcement experience.Commissioner Madonna testified that he was opposed to hiring retired members of lawenforcement because he did not want “to have anybody with a bad attitude start and workwith the younger people.” However, Madonna did hire a retired lieutenant from theOakland Police Department who was his longtime friend.At the time of the Inspector General’s review, applicants were subject to medicaland psychiatric examinations and were required to pass a written examination andundergo a background investigation. Approved applicants were admitted to variouspolice academies in New York and New Jersey for basic police training.The Police Division Lacked Adequate Written Policies and ProceduresThe Inspector General found that the Police Division lacked adequate officialpolicies and procedures. The majority of detectives interviewed stated that, other thanthe 25-page employee manual for all Commission employees, they did not receive anytype of guide book or police policies and procedures manual when they started. Some ofthe detectives had received an unofficial booklet drafted by a detective approximately tenyears ago.Former Chief of Police Smith acknowledged the importance of proper policiesand procedures for police officers and admitted that the Waterfront Commission lackedsufficient regulations. Smith stated in substance that, although important, developingadequate policies and procedures was not a priority. When asked if any policies wentinto effect during his tenure, Smith stated that he did not have time to write policy andprocedures.New Detectives Received Inadequate TrainingConsisting of only approximately 40 members, the Waterfront Commission’sPolice Division does not host its own police academy. Newly hired detectives areassigned to a nearby police academy. The choice of academy depends largely on thetiming of the hire: the new detective is sent to whichever academy is beginning a newcourse of training. Detectives were trained primarily at academies in New Jersey, and afew detectives were trained at the Port Authority Police Academy. The course of study ata particular academy is determined by the governing police agency.Although a Waterfront Commission detective is a law enforcement officer in bothNew York and New Jersey, most Waterfront Commission detectives are trained only onthe law of the state of the academy they attend. Only detectives attending the PortAuthority academy receive instruction covering the laws of both states. Although theWaterfront Commission does offer field training, most detectives stated that they werenever educated on the relevant laws of the state in which they did not train.33