To some cops, 'roids trump reason

They can cause aggression and depression. They can impair judgment, derail impulse control and cause erratic mood swings. They can even give you cancerous tumors and shrink your testicles.

So why would police officers - whose chief thug-thwarting tool, arguably, should be a cool, rational mind - want to take steroids?

One day after three Philadelphia police officers were arrested in an alleged steroids ring, area police leaders agreed that steroid use has become an unshakable, illegal vice among some badge-wearers who believe bulking up will give them a physical and psychological edge in crime-fighting.

"It's something that you have to be aware of, especially if you have a younger department, because a lot of the officers want to enhance their physique, which they think will enhance their ability to do the job," said Upper Darby Police Superintendent Michael Chitwood.

The three cops collared Wednesday morning for allegedly selling and distributing steroids didn't admit using the muscle-boosters when they appeared in federal court that afternoon.

But if appearance is any indication, they're their own best customers: Detective Keith Gidelson, 34, and Officer Joseph McIntyre, 36, strode into court with bulging biceps bursting from their T-shirts, while Officer George Sambuca, 25, opted for a long-sleeve T-shirt that hugged his stocky frame and flaunted his bulky biceps.

Yesterday, a law-enforcement source said that other Philadelphia cops were using steroids they got from Gidelson, but that they were few in number and didn't represent a "tip of the iceberg." The investigation continues, though.

Most departments don't routinely test for steroids when they screen new recruits for drugs or randomly drug-test officers.

The Pennsylvania State Police department tests new applicants for steroids, but other law-enforcement agencies usually wait for suspicious behavior to signal a need for a steroid test.

Upper Darby will test for steroids if a supervisor notices an officer suddenly get overly muscled, especially if the bulk-up accompanies citizen complaints or reports of aggression, Chitwood said.

In Philadelphia, police spokesman Lt. Ray Evers said supervisors will turn officers suspected of juicing over to Internal Affairs for steroid-testing.

"We don't routinely test for steroids because of the costs of the tests, compared to how [comparatively few] people are on steroids," Evers said. "I heard the costs are very, very extensive."

But critics say steroids should be added to the list of illicit substances routinely screened because the consequences of steroid use can be dire.

For example, Michael Tweedy was on anabolic steroids in October 2003 when, as a police officer in Petersburg, Va., he chased a motorist who fled a traffic stop then stomped the man's head, even though he was already handcuffed and lying on the ground choking on pepper spray and his own blood. The man nearly died and remains disabled.

The Newark Star-Ledger reported last December that hundreds of law-enforcement workers in New Jersey received steroids and human growth hormone from a corrupt Jersey City doctor. Even worse, most of the workers used their government-funded health-care plans to pay for the drugs, the paper found.