James Burke (police officer)

From WikiProjectMed
Jump to navigation Jump to search

James Burke is an American convicted criminal and former law enforcement officer from the state of New York.

Biography

Burke was a New York City police officer in the 1980s. He later began working for the Suffolk County Police Department in Suffolk County, New York. In 1995, a Suffolk County Police Department internal probe found that Burke had "had a relationship with a woman engaged in prostitution and drug dealing, and had engaged in sex acts in police vehicles while on duty and in uniform".[1]

Burke was appointed chief of the Suffolk County Police Department by Suffolk County Executive Steve Bellone in 2012[2] and served in that capacity until 2015.[3] During his tenure as chief, Burke supervised the investigation of the Gilgo Beach serial killings. Burke's work on the Gilgo Beach case, "including a decision to end cooperation with the FBI",[4] drew criticism from other law enforcement officials.[1]

In May 2013, the FBI and the US Attorney's Office opened an investigation into Burke's alleged beating of a suspect in police custody, a subsequent cover-up, and coercion of witnesses.[5] Burke was charged with assaulting Christopher Loeb after Loeb was arrested for allegedly breaking into Burke's unlocked vehicle and stealing a "gun belt, ammunition, a box of cigars and a bag containing sex toys and pornography".[4] Burke pleaded guilty to reduced charges in February 2016.[5] Following Burke's guilty plea, Suffolk County Executive Steve Bellone commented, "'Jim Burke, someone I entrusted with great responsibility, lied to my face for nearly three years and orchestrated a cover-up to perpetuate that lie'".[2] In November 2016, Burke was sentenced to 46 months in federal prison[6] for assault and obstruction of justice.[7] In January 2017, Burke began serving his sentence at Federal Correctional Institution, Allenwood Low. He was released to house arrest in November 2018.[8] His sentence was completed in April 2019.[9]

In August 2023, Burke was arrested for public lewdness, offering a sex act, and unlawful solicitation after allegedly exposing himself to a male plainclothes park ranger at Vietnam Veterans Memorial Park in Farmingville and propositioning him.[3][10]

See also

References

  1. ^ a b "Former Suffolk County police chief James Burke arrested for allegedly soliciting sex at park". www.cbsnews.com. August 22, 2023.
  2. ^ a b "Ex-police chief admits beating man over theft of sex toys". OneidaDispatch.com. February 27, 2016.
  3. ^ a b "Ex-New York police chief who once led Gilgo Beach probe charged with soliciting sex in park". AP News. August 22, 2023.
  4. ^ a b "Ex-Suffolk County police chief who oversaw Gilgo Beach murder investigation arrested". ABC7 New York. August 22, 2023.
  5. ^ a b Dollinger, Arielle; Santora, Marc (2016-02-26). "James Burke, Ex-Suffolk County Police Chief, Pleads Guilty". The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved 2017-11-01.
  6. ^ Goldstein, Joseph (2016-11-02). "James Burke, Ex-Suffolk County Police Chief, Is Sentenced to 46 Months". The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved 2023-07-17.
  7. ^ "Eastern District of New York | Former Suffolk County Police Chief Sentenced To 46 Months In Prison For Assault And Obstruction Of Justice | United States Department of Justice". www.justice.gov. 2016-11-02. Retrieved 2023-07-17.
  8. ^ "Police chief in sex-toy beatdown released from prison". New York Post. November 26, 2018. Retrieved July 17, 2023.
  9. ^ "Ex-Police Chief James Burke To Be Released From Prison Thursday". Smithtown, NY Patch. 2019-04-11. Retrieved 2023-07-17.
  10. ^ "Ex-Suffolk PD Chief Tried To Get Out Of Arrest: Officials". Patch.com. August 22, 2023.
Retrieved from "https://mdwiki.org/wiki/James_Burke_(police_officer)"