Yesterday in front of the NYPD’s Civilian Complaint Review Board, a police captain pled guilty to pointing his gun at a pair of tweenage boys who were playing tag in their Bed Stuy street in 2013. He received just 30 days of lost vacation time for threatening deadly force against two innocent children. You might think he got off pretty easy. His union does not.

The verdict, the chief of the union representing NYPD captains told the New York Daily News, “reveals their true bias against anyone wearing a uniform and their need for public floggings at the expense of due process of rights of officers.”

According to the CCRB complaint, then-lieutenant Brian McCaughey approached Kesean Smalls, 13, and Jahniel Hinds, 12, on Quincy Street in Bed Stuy, where they lived, on September 13, 2013. McCaughey allegedly had his gun drawn and shouted “motherfucker, get on the ground” at the boys, who were not armed or otherwise violent. Smalls weighed 96 pounds, and Hinds weighed 88. They were playing tag.

According to the Daily News report, McCaughey—who, again, pled guilty—spent two hours at the hearing trying to have his sentence reduced to 18 lost vacation days, but the CCRB was set on 30. You can see why is union leaders were upset. To issue a public flogging like that, you’d have to have a true bias against anyone wearing a uniform.


Image via AP. Contact the author at andy@gawker.com.