Reward Offered To Identify Democratic Delegates Who Spit On American Flag & Law Enforcement

Outraged by the unprovoked assault and disrespect by unidentified VIP attendees against the Albany Police Honor Guards at the New York State Democratic Convention, the Law Enforcement Alliance of America (LEAA) and national radio talk show host Bob Just are calling upon Democratic Candidate Hillary Clinton and officials of the New York Democratic Party to help bring the person or persons responsible to justice.

“Senate Candidate Hillary Clinton has been quick to denounce the actions of police officers,” said James Fotis, LEAA’s Executive Director, “and we’d hope that she would be equally as quick, forceful and direct in denouncing this most recent denigration of America’s law enforcement.”

The Albany Times-Union reported on May 18 that members of the Albany Police Department Honor Guard were spit upon as the police officers carried flags into an area of the arena where only Democratic delegates with passes were allowed access. Some of the 11,500 Democratic supporters attending the event also called the police officers “Nazis” and “members of Giuliani’s Third Reich.”

Fotis called the incident “petty in the view of some, but an egregious insult to all the men and women of law enforcement who risk their lives daily for the welfare of citizens in their communities — particularly those in New York. If political leaders tolerate behavior of this sort against police, they encourage worse acts by more violent elements of society.”

It appears that this incident is a violation of New York State Penal Law 240.26, regarding “harassment in the second degree.” In New York, a “violation” is defined as a criminal offense, other than a traffic infraction, for which a person can be arrested and, if convicted, ultimately sentenced to up to 15 days in jail.

“This sort of activity is appalling and reprehensible,” continued Mr. Fotis. “I’m offended that this kind of blind hatred toward American law enforcement could exist. And even worse, as a retired New York officer, I’m outraged that this behavior was tolerated and condoned by those attending the Democratic convention in New York and that the group’s leadership has been virtually unapologetic.”

LEAA is teaming up with Bob Just of the Talk Radio Network, and other talk show hosts, to identify the culprits and bring them to justice accordingly. To accomplish this goal, LEAA is hoping to raise $25,000 as an incentive for anyone providing information leading to the identification and arrest of the person or persons involved in the incident. If more than $25,000 is raised, half of the excess will be donated to the Law Enforcement Museum in Washington, DC, to raise public awareness about law enforcement-related issues, and the balance of the reward money will be disbursed to the person(s) providing the accurate tip(s), as determined by the final judges.

LEAA and Bob Just have determined that the National Law Enforcement Museum is a worthy benefactor of these funds as it is intended to raise public awareness about issues related to law enforcement and to improve the public’s understanding of the role of law enforcement. The museum was first proposed in Congress by Sen. Ben Nighthorse Campbell (R-Colo.), a former deputy sheriff, who feels that the museum “will ensure that their story of heroism and sacrifice is never forgotten, just as we must never forget the thousands of other officers who have made the ultimate sacrifice to secure the safety and well-being of our communities.”

Tips and information about the perpetrators in the Albany “spitting” incident must be reported in writing and faxed to LEAA at (703) 556-6485 with sufficient contact information on the person submitting the tip. Information about those making the report will be kept in strict confidence. A person who is later determined to be a guilty party (one who participated in the spitting and disparaging comments toward police officers at the New York Democratic Convention) will not be awarded any funds collected during this endeavor.

Checks or money orders should be made payable to the “LEAA Foundation, Inc.” and mailed to LEAA Foundation, 7700 Leesburg Pike #421, Falls Church, VA 22043. Further, the “memo” line of the check should indicate “Albany Reward.” The LEAA Foundation is a federally recognized 501(c)(3) corporation that is dedicated, in part, to educating the public concerning law enforcement issues.

A panel of three judges will be the ultimate arbiters of any questions or disputes and they will determine how and when the funds will be distributed in the case of multiple informants who provided accurate data. The three judges are Jim Fotis, Bob Just and Ed Nowicki, executive director of the Wisconsin-based National Criminal Justice Training Network.

With more than 65,000 members and supporters, the Law Enforcement Alliance of America is the nation’s largest coalition of law enforcement professionals, crime victims, and concerned citizens dedicated to making America safer. Having initiated an aggressive “Support Your Local Police” campaign over the years, LEAA is striving to stamp out the bigotry and political condemnation that is apparent in incidents like the spitting on Honor Guard officers at the recent Albany event.

http://www.leaa.org/