15 cops facing dismissal in cheating scandal
State police this morning released a list of 15 suburban cops who lost their badges yesterday for allegedly cheating on a routine re-certification test in February 2009.
15 cops facing dismissal in cheating scandal
William Bender
State police this morning released a list of 14 Delaware County police officers, and one Chester County cop, who lost their badges yesterday for allegedly cheating on a routine re-certification test in February 2009. The Municipal Police Officers' Education and Training Commission voted for the "permanent revocation" of their certification, which means that they wouldn't be able to work as cops in Pennsylvania. They have 30 days to appeal to Commonwealth Court, according to state police spokesman Jack Lewis.
What's strange about this scandal, which I wrote about in July 2009, is that the Act 180 exam administered by MPOETC is extremely easy, as it's been explained to me. Those who don't get seven out of 10 answers correct can re-take the exam to keep their certification. "It's as close to an open-book test as you can possibly get," was how one cop described it in 2009.
The list of the 15 decertified officers:
Robert Barbour, Darby Borough
Brian Boyd, Upland Borough
Ian Cleghorn, Ridley Park Borough
Kenneth Collins, Darby Borough
Kevin Cosentino, Upper Darby Township
David Cuddhy, Darby Borough
Michael Curran, Upland Borough
Daniel DiNardo, Upland Borough
Francis Ely Jr., Brookhaven Borough
Jonathan Freeman, Trainer Borough
Richard Fuller, Brookhaven Borough
Sean Gallagher, Oxford Borough
Timothy Hannigan, Darby Borough
Mark Heine, Ridley Township
Michael Irey, Nether Providence Twp.
Update: State police just sent this update from MPOETC: "Employment status to terminate is the responsibility of the individual police department. Revoking an officer’s certification connotes that the officers no longer have the authority to enforce the laws of the Commonwealth, i.e. Crimes Code, Vehicle Code, Rules of Criminal Procedure, or wear a firearm. Any citations the officers write after decertification cannot get entered into the AOPC system. The individuals can work in an administrative capacity IF the department has such a provision in their agency policies."
Comment removed.- Comment removed.
Offhand, I'd say manyhats is pretty stupid AND the majority of these cops were low-class.— sterilize- Comment removed.
- West Point's Cadet Honor Code reads simply that: "A cadet will not lie, cheat, or steal, or tolerate those who do." Cadets accused of violating the Honor Code face an investigative and hearing process. If they are found guilty by a jury of their peers, they face severe consequences ranging from being "turned back" (repeating an academic year) to separation from the academy.— tiger
- Good, get rid of these cheating morons.— highseas
- manyhats - As they'd put it in Roscommon - You're a nutter! Either you've gone a little off or the turf smoke's got in your eyes and lungs choking off the oxygen to your last synapses ... having a name that might sound Irish has nothing to do with this whereas deceit and stupidity have everything to do with it ... Keep your fairy tales (and they are less than that) that to yourself and leave ethnicity out of it.— Tkat
- Good riddance to rubbish. Hope they don't bother to replace them. We don't need more crooks.— IBINUBU
- The State police should examine their own promotional examination corruptness.— WIRETAPPER WIL
