Ex-cop offers apology to city Sentenced to four years in prison, Jeffrey D. Curtis reveals regrets to Schenectady after admitting he stole drugs from evidence locker
By JORDAN CARLEO-EVANGELIST, Staff writer First published: Saturday, September 15, 2007
SCHENECTADY -- A disgraced former city vice squad detective said he was driven to drug addiction by the stress of his job and the pain of lingering injuries for reasons he still does not entirely understand. But Jeffrey D. Curtis vowed Friday to restore his name and once again contribute to society shortly before a judge sentenced him to four years in state prison for stealing drugs from an evidence locker to fuel his own addiction.
"I was so squeaky clean it was pathetic," said Curtis, 47, of Guilderland. "So what's changed? What's happened to me?"
Standing in a courtroom where he had sent countless drug cases and pausing often to compose himself as he read a lengthy statement, Curtis apologized to his family and to the city of Schenectady for his actions and called for more training and programs to help officers who find themselves battling addiction.
Curtis triggered an ugly scandal that erupted in January when prosecutors were forced to dismiss charges against a reputed drug dealer because the evidence against him had gone missing. Drugs, mostly crack-cocaine, were eventually found missing in 16 cases, prompting city officials to call in the State Police.
"I'm confident that I will rise to great heights again," Curtis, a married father of two, told County Judge Karen A. Drago. "Contrary to what has been said about me, I'm not a bad person."
While he said he accepted responsibility for his actions, Curtis nonetheless questioned the conduct of the investigators who pursued him -- specifically their decision to follow him for weeks after he failed a drug test, surveil him buying drugs, and ultimately arrest him, rather than intervene and try to help him.
"I was allowed to continue to carry a weapon and continue my duties as a detective," Curtis said, standing at the same defense table from which he had pleaded guilty to drug possession and evidence tampering June 25.
His attorney, Andrew Safranko, would add later: "He believes that they could have had some sort of intervention."
Outside the courthouse, District Attorney Robert M. Carney downplayed Curtis' criticisms, saying the investigator was deposed by troopers even before a hair sample taken from him tested 55 times beyond what's considered a positive hit for cocaine.
Carney said investigators also uncovered evidence that Curtis may have done Internet research on how to beat the drug test.
"Enmeshed in it as he was, he doesn't see the other side," said Carney.
Carney described the probe into the missing drugs as "virtually closed" but said a grand jury will still be convened to hear the evidence and, it is hoped, issue a report to city officials that could aid changes in policy.
The city has already acted, most notably hiring former State Police Superintendent Wayne Bennett as its new public safety commissioner. Among other changes, Bennett has limited the number of people who have access to evidence lockers and suspended, then demoted, Curtis' former boss, Daniel Diamond.
Diamond was never implicated in Curtis' actions and was never accused of breaking any laws. Police officials said his demotion from sergeant to uniform patrol stemmed from a failure to follow the department's evidence management policies.
"I'm ashamed for the disgrace that I brought to this city," Curtis said. "It was a job I loved and cherished and took great pride in doing." Before he was led away in handcuffs, Curtis embraced retired city Police Chief Richard E. O'Connor and thanked him for hiring him some two decades ago. O'Connor, now a state court officer, was among a handful assigned to guard the courtroom.
I talked to some folks at work and I asked why no one would speak to the police....they said they were afraid for retalialtion from the 'gangs'.....as I see it, the 'force' does not uphold and protect those in the the other 'groups'....not ALL folks are bad because they live in the city.....but, it does appear to be a 'Boston Southie' movement/force???????
...you are a product of your environment, your environment is a product of your priorities, your priorities are a product of you......
The replacement of morality and conscience with law produces a deadly paradox.
STOP BEING GOOD DEMOCRATS---STOP BEING GOOD REPUBLICANS--START BEING GOOD AMERICANS
SCHENECTADY Witness alleges harassment by detective Investigator says he sought testimony BY STEVEN COOK Gazette Reporter
A local witness facing a misdemeanor harassment charge, accused of leaving a threatening message on a detective’s phone, has now fi led a complaint against the detective, alleging harassment and threats. The man, along with his mother, filed complaints against district attorney’s Investigator David Mantei this week, claiming he harassed them while trying to secure the man’s testimony in an assault case. The complaints were filed this week by Yolanda Dobbs and her son Quan Dobbs. Mantei, however, said Tuesday he did not harass them, he was simply doing his job to secure testimony of a reluctant witness. The complaint was filed with the district attorney’s office through the local chapter of the NAACP. Schenectady County District Attorney Robert Carney said this week the complaints would be investigated. He said he had not received such complaints before. Quan Dobbs, now 23, had been a witness to the May 26, 2006 shooting of his cousin, 15-year-old Reyes “Richie” Guerrero. Guerrero was shot in the head and now requires 24-hour care. Antwon White was convicted in July of first-degree assault. He is to be sentenced next week. The Dobbses argue that Quan was a willing witness, just difficult to get hold of. Yolanda Dobbs said her son waited to testify for two days. He ultimately was not used. But they claim Mantei made threatening phone calls, saying Quan would go to jail if he didn’t testify. Quan also claims in his complaint that at one point Mantei threatened to plant drugs on him. “That’s not the way to handle this,” Yolanda Dobbs said. “It’s not like he’s running from him. He’s living his life, paying his rent.” Mantei denied the accusations, calling them “smoke and mirrors.” He said he told Quan Dobbs that if he didn’t show up, the judge could issue a warrant for his arrest. “All the time he was dodging us,” Mantei said. “We had to keep looking for him,” Mantei said. “It’s not harassment, it’s called doing my job.”
You would think this guy would want to come forth as a witness and bring justice for a violent crime against his cousin who was shot in the head for God's sake! Geezzzz!
When the INSANE are running the ASYLUM In individuals, insanity is rare; but in groups, parties, nations and epochs, it is the rule. -- Friedrich Nietzsche
“How fortunate for those in power that people never think.” Adolph Hitler
Brazen stealing appalls neighbors Thief taking siding off of dead man’s house BY KATHLEEN MOORE Gazette Reporter Reach Gazette reporter Kathleen Moore at 395-3120 or moore@dailygazette.com.
First his daughter died. Then his wife. Finally, at age 73, William Smith Sheppard died as well, so alone that the funeral home didn’t even hold a service for him. Now, vandals are taking the last thing left to his name: his house. A man is slowly ripping off every strip of aluminum siding on 524 Paige St., where Sheppard lived with his wife for 52 years. The neighbors are incensed, not only by the theft but by the brazenness of it. They’ve seen the thief walk up in broad daylight, pry off siding and carry it away to his house around the corner. “It’s absolutely ridiculous,” said Dawn Gadson. “You’ve got people stealing siding off a house! You pay your taxes, take care of your property and you have to look outside your house and see that.” Odessa Mitchell, who lives across the street, sees the theft as a new low for Schenectady. “It’s terrible, with them stealing the siding off,” she said. “It looks ugly. They need to do something.” They suspect he’s selling it as scrap metal, since the siding is weathered and stained. But he wouldn’t make much money that way: at the local scrap yard, Mary Predel pays just 55 cents per pound for aluminum siding. It’s not like copper, which has become so valuable that vandals now break into houses under renovation and steal brand-new copper pipes. The aluminum price hasn’t gone up in recent years, Predel said. City officials didn’t learn about the house until Monday, when neighbors took the issue to the Schenectady City Council. They took the matter to the council after police did not respond to their calls, they said. They can identify the vandal and they know where he lives, but they said police weren’t interested in their help. Once the council was informed, code enforcers were sent to inspect the house. Corporation Counsel L. John Van Norden expects the enforcers to schedule a board-up crew, stopping vandals from getting inside. Neighbors said children often climb into the house to play. Van Norden is also going to court to take the house as an abandoned property. At that point, the city can sell it to an owner who will live there and hopefully deter thieves from taking any more siding. But he said it’s going to be difficult to protect the siding before the sale. “I don’t know how you do it. Only if you put a police officer there 24-7,” he said. “This is becoming a common problem — not siding, usually, but copper piping. Stripping is becoming quite common.” By the time the city takes ownership of the house, the siding could be gone. Van Norden said it could take six months to a year to get a judge to hand over the property. “These are more difficult than even the absentee landlords,” he said. “The judge will have to assign someone to administer the estate and search out any heirs. Safe bet: six months to a year. It could be shorter, but it could take quite awhile.” It took the city three days just to find Sheppard’s death certifi cate because there are so many ways to spell his name. They looked under the more common spellings before finding the right information in a Daily Gazette obituary. The obituary also said that Sheppard had no known survivors. His wife Barbara died a year before him, and their daughter Linda died in 1993.
EDITORIALS No-‘snitch’ code a break in social compact
Schenectady law enforcement authorities are not alone in facing the problem that Gazette reporter Kathleen Moore so vividly portrayed in a story Thursday. In inner cities across the country, even in England, there has grown a culture of non-cooperation with police. This is not just problematic, it is pathologic. Society cannot long function this way; it will break down. We’re not talking about petty crimes here. Schenectady has had two murders in the last week, and in each case there were dozens of witnesses or others with information, all of whom have refused to cooperate. That means they would rather allow the most violent criminals to remain in their midst, perhaps next to victimize themselves, their friends or family members, than “snitch” to police. It is as irresponsible as it is senseless — especially when community members are literally screaming at police, as Police Commissioner Wayne Bennett says they were after the Duane Avenue murder, to “do your job.” They can’t do their job without the help of the people who live in the neighborhood, who are not doing “their job.” As Moore’s story suggested, this code of silence started with gangs, who refused to tell not only on their own members but on other gangs, so as to expect the same protection themselves. And it was enforced not just by the gang ethic but by the fear of reprisals. There appears to be some of that fear at work here, as well as a general distrust of police, but, according to District Attorney Robert Carney, it’s mostly “a cultural unwillingness to help.” As one man in Moore’s story put it, “If you tell on somebody, that be wrong. That’s not me. I wasn’t raised like that.” Another, a 12-year-old, said if he saw someone shot, he wouldn’t help or even go near the victim, lest police find him and make him tell what he saw. This is really sad, and the implications are terrifying. Sociologists talk about criminal subcultures, where the aberrant is normal, and people are rewarded for behavior that in the larger society is frowned on. Whether from family breakdown, violence-celebrating rap music, lack of civics education in school, all of the above or something else, this culture has now spread to even the law-abiding. Carney says that before the most recent killings, things had been improving: more people had been cooperating after crimes. We need to get back there, and stay there. That may require more of an outreach effort from the police, education from the schools, and, above all, leadership from within the neighborhood itself. Otherwise, residents will be at the mercy of the bad guys, with people shot dead, lots of others around — and nobody saw a thing.
Sociologists talk about criminal subcultures, where the aberrant is normal, and people are rewarded for behavior that in the larger society is frowned on.
What is missing here.....are we our brothers keeper???....first there has to be a split in the society....like in Schenectady....have's and have nots....white and black....hispanic and black....hispanic and white....guyanese and black.....indian and guyanese etc.....the list is endless.....
But those that are to 'serve and protect and uphold the law' must transcend ALL these barriers---very hard to do.....I work in a nursing home...the population I take care of is the very end of the "those people" population....they make no excuses but when dementia sets in our 'foundation of learning' is exposed.....most of our care takers are those on the other side of the barriers.....whether is be misunderstood, learned, fear etc.....
I am glad I am not a police officer...... >
...you are a product of your environment, your environment is a product of your priorities, your priorities are a product of you......
The replacement of morality and conscience with law produces a deadly paradox.
STOP BEING GOOD DEMOCRATS---STOP BEING GOOD REPUBLICANS--START BEING GOOD AMERICANS
Oh there was a sub-culture back then too. Let's not forget the Mafia. Politically Correct or not, the mafia was huge and ran just about everything. People were shot and killed and no one said a word. EVERYTHING was brushed under the rug back then. Everything was hushed up! So it is basically the same society, just a different culture.
When the INSANE are running the ASYLUM In individuals, insanity is rare; but in groups, parties, nations and epochs, it is the rule. -- Friedrich Nietzsche
“How fortunate for those in power that people never think.” Adolph Hitler
Beating bad behavior Violent or disruptive incidents are never good for business BY PETER HUSTON For The Sunday Gazette
“And there she was, spinning around, one handcuff hanging from her wrist, knocking things off the shelf in the Dollar General Store with each spin, police chasing her down the aisles and stomping through these unopened bags of potato chips as they did, and with each step — pop-pop-pop — a bag would break and potato chips would fl y everywhere.” Hearing the story, I knew I was back in Schenectady. Downtown Schenectady, particularly the Jay Street pedestrian mall, has intertwined problems of violence, stupidity and people behaving badly. In this case, the story was that a woman sat in front of the Jay Street creperie, her feet on a table, not ordering anything. The owner, another woman, informed her that the tables were for customers only, and to please remove her feet. EXPLOSIVE REACTION The noncustomer allegedly exploded, assaulting the owner with fists and a lit cigarette. Police soon arrived, a struggle and chase ensued from Jay to the State Street dollar store, where property, including flying potato chips — poppop-pop — was destroyed. Unfortunately, this is not an isolated incident. Problems involving people behaving badly are a part of business and life on Jay Street. In today’s largely post-industrial Northeastern United States, property rates in places like downtown Schenectady are about as low as business rates get. Years ago, the Jay Street pedestrian mall was created to take advantage of this. There are a lot of interesting, creative, dedicated people with dreams of running a small store, art studio or restaurant. But because it’s far from easy to make these enterprises work, these businesses tend to come and go. Problem people make it more difficult. Over the past 15 years, I’ve had my share of run-ins with odd people on Jay Street, and there have been times when these encounters have turned violent or near violent. It’s important to understand the mentality of some Jay Street troublemakers. These people are generally not predators and do not cause trouble for financial gain. Aside from one late-night incident where I was threatened for watching what was probably the start of a drug deal, and another where I was threatened after accusing a beggar who regularly feigned car trouble of lying (I was in turn accused of racism), money had little to do with the incidents. This was not predatory violence. TANTRUM VIOLENCE It was closer to what self-defense author Marc MacYoung categorizes as “tantrum violence” — violence committed by frustrated people less interested in changing their lives than in changing their mental state by working themselves into a frenzy where they feel powerful and important. The obvious response, to simply jail troublemakers, is simplistic. Sheriff Buffardi estimates a costs of $100 a day to jail a person. This is a lot of money, $700 a week, particularly if the person is released without change in their behavior. Incarceration does not reform people unless they have the ability to understand that they were arrested for behaving badly and understand if they stop behaving this way they will not be re-arrested. Some people are not able to understand this, and become repeat offenders of pointless offenses. Others simply cannot control themselves. Many people have problems grasping the concept that their actions lead to consequences. People who behave badly in public but see arrest and incarceration as “bad luck” or the fault of the person who called the police, or “racism,” or even something to brag about, are difficult to reform. And there are many of these people. If the city authorities wish to improve the quality of life and shopping experiences downtown, they need to recognize this problem — the interconnection between violence and poor thinking — and face it head on. SERVICE AGENCIES Many people familiar with Jay Street say that part of the problem is the layout of city social service agencies. The Bethesda House day center is on one side of Jay and the Salvation Army’s soup kitchen is on the other, with various rehab agencies on both sides, making the Jay Street pedestrian mall a natural pathway for users of these services. Although the majority of these people are harmless, they buy little, and a single troublemaker can spoil a store owner or shopper’s perception of Jay Street. An examination of these agencies, their clientele and their effect on foot traffic is needed. A greater police presence on Jay would help. Police can often deter or de-escalate problems without an arrest. Although there is a police office in Center City, ironically across from the creperie, people tell me it’s often empty and has little impact. Furthermore, at least some Jay Street store owners, past and present, do not trust the police, having had bad experiences with them. Despite this, I believe an increased downtown police presence, perhaps bicycle cops who, move fast but are approachable and personable, would be helpful.
Schenectady's bleeding First published: Sunday, September 23, 2007
Last month, it was Albany. This month, Schenectady. When will it end? Last month, a 15-year-old named Shahied Oliver was gunned down while at a birthday party in Arbor Hill.
Now shift to Schenectady, where there were two killings within 13 hours of each other just over a week ago. Early in the morning of Sept. 14, John W. Johnson, 39, was gunned down at a local bistro. Just 13 hours before, Hassan Rainey, 29, had been shot to death in afternoon daylight as he sat in his car near a street corner.
They were the most serious incidents. But on Wednesday of that week, a man was wounded while standing on a street. On Tuesday, a teenager was shot in the leg while standing on a street corner. In Albany, meanwhile, two people were wounded by gunfire inside a bar early Friday morning.
Schenectady, it seems, is as much, or even more of, a city under siege of violence as Albany. In both cities, officials and community leaders are searching for ways to stop the violence. The stakes are high. The larger the specter of violence that looms over the cities, the more difficult it will be for leaders to lure young families, businesses and jobs to their downtowns. And the more residents in Albany and Schenectady begin to fear for their safety, the more they are likely to flee to the suburbs.
But what can be done? One place to start is to take note of the common thread that appears to run through these incidents: The victims may have been the targets of rival groups, if not organized gangs, seeking to avenge previous shootings. Indeed, Schenectady's public safety commissioner, Wayne Bennett, says last week's shootings were not random acts of violence but rather linked to one another. In Albany, the young Shahied Oliver was facing a felony assault charge in a shooting in the South End, and may well have been a victim of revenge.
If this theory of retaliatory shootings holds up under examination, as appears likely, then officials in both cities can begin to map strategy for breaking the cycle of violence. It won't be easy. Many larger cities are struggling with the same scourge and have yet to find an answer. But it seems self-evident that the best way to begin is to reach out to young inner city youths to warn them against joining the culture of violence, and of the need to cooperate with the police.
Last month, it was Albany County District Attorney David Soares who was making the plea for cooperation. "I know the rules that govern the streets," he said, "and I know that the stop snitching culture exists and those words ring very loudly in every corner."
This month, the words were ringing in Schenectady, as Mr. Bennett expressed frustration with the code of silence that prevents Schenectady police from making arrests.
Neither city can accept such a status quo if they hope to have a chance of revitalizing themselves. It will take leadership by politicians, police officials, prosecutors, teachers and school administrators, pastors and parents to break the wall of silence.
Main Entry: in·for·mant Pronunciation: in-'for-m&nt Function: noun : a person who gives information : as a : INFORMER b : one who supplies cultural or linguistic data in response to interrogation by an investigator
Maybe this is our problem....the definitions ring with a negative tone.....think of a different word.....plea bargains and snitches/informers 'dirty' the windows
...you are a product of your environment, your environment is a product of your priorities, your priorities are a product of you......
The replacement of morality and conscience with law produces a deadly paradox.
STOP BEING GOOD DEMOCRATS---STOP BEING GOOD REPUBLICANS--START BEING GOOD AMERICANS
Carney addresses Parents of Murdered Children DA decries antisnitching culture, social breakdown BY BOB CONNER Gazette Reporter
Schenectady County District Attorney Robert Carney on Sunday decried the “stop snitching” mindset that has frustrated efforts to solve the Sept. 14 homicide of John Johnson at the Shanghai Bistro on State Street. Speaking to the Capital District Chapter of Parents of Murdered Children, Carney said that if witnesses and victims of violent crime see no obligation to cooperate with police, “If people think that’s an ethic that doesn’t apply to them . . . then we face a real social breakdown.” There may have been more than 100 witnesses to Johnson’s homicide in the nightclub, but most of them fled the scene before police could interview them. Carney said some of the reluctance to cooperate may stem from fear of retaliation, but authorities can help with that. “We can relocate people,” he said, referring to witness protection programs. “It is not wrong, in fact it is profoundly right to communicate what you have witnessed to the proper authorities,” the district attorney said. The POMC meeting, held at the Central Park Casino, was part of the National Day of Remembrance for Murder Victims. Those in attendance included Kathy Cherry, mother of Hillary Downey and grandmother of Romello Taylor, who were murdered last year in Schenectady. Also there were Raymond and Isabelle Zanta, parents of Susan Zanta, who was killed in 1974. “A 16-year-old beautiful girl. She was raped and murdered,” Raymond Zanta said after the meeting. The Zantas said their religious faith is what has enabled them to deal with the loss of their daughter. Mrs. Zanta said she would advise anyone in similar circumstances, “Turn to God. That’s what saved us.” The murderers of Downey, Taylor and Zanta are in prison for the crimes. About 40 people attended the meeting, including children, siblings and cousins of murder victims, as well as parents. Pat Gioia, the chapter president, had them light candles, and say who their loved ones were. Some chose to tell something about them, or read a poem. Gioia’s daughter, Mary Regina Gioia, was murdered in California in 1985 by a man who is in prison for the crime. Diane Spencer’s daughter, Jennifer Fake, was killed in Saratoga Springs in 2002, by a man who pleaded guilty to first-degree manslaughter and is now in prison. Spencer has worked for the past year as a victim advocate in Carney’s office. She told the group how, after her daughter’s death, she got involved with various agencies as a volunteer. Spencer said law enforcement agencies in the region are committed to arresting perpetrators and protecting victims, and need the public’s help to do that. Martha Lasher-Warner also was there. She is the mother of Princetown resident Liza Warner, who in 2004 was killed by her husband, who then committed suicide. Lasher-Warner has established the Liza’s Legacy Foundation, which can be found online, to increase awareness and help victims of domestic violence. She informed the group of an Oct. 12 conference at the state Legislative Office Building in Albany, about preventing domestic violence when law enforcement officers are the potential perpetrators. The keynote speaker will be Lane Judson, whose daughter, Crystal, was killed in a shopping center parking lot in 2003 by her estranged husband, the police chief of Tacoma, Wash., who then killed himself. Above, Shirley Cancer wipes away a tear Sunday as she remembers her son, Jahod, a murder victim who was among those memorialized Sunday at a National Day of Remembrance held in Schenectady by the Capital District chapter of Parents of Murdered Children. Cancer’s son, a Troy High school football star, was killed on May 11 outside his home. At left, Pat Gioia, chapter president of the Parents of Murdered Children, participates in the ceremony. BRUCE SQUIERS/ GAZETTE PHOTOGRAPHER
Speaking to the Capital District Chapter of Parents of Murdered Children, Carney said that if witnesses and victims of violent crime see no obligation to cooperate with police, “If people think that’s an ethic that doesn’t apply to them . . . then we face a real social breakdown.”
The folks that I work with all say that snitching does little good when the officers are just as 'dirty' and I will say it here---unethical.......that is the face portrayed....not to mention the folks that call for a police officer because they trapped in their house because there is shooting in the street and it takes the officers 30min to arrive????
I wasn't there but these folks were and this is what their story is.......and if they 'snitch or inform(ant)' their children are not safe in school and are threatened.....?????
So where did the breakdown occur and who is responsible for putting up the bridge and fortifying the society against itself?????
a snake that swallows it's tail eventually consumes itself.......
...you are a product of your environment, your environment is a product of your priorities, your priorities are a product of you......
The replacement of morality and conscience with law produces a deadly paradox.
STOP BEING GOOD DEMOCRATS---STOP BEING GOOD REPUBLICANS--START BEING GOOD AMERICANS
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