Police Brutality Settlements in NYC Total Almost $1B???

An AP investigation has revealed that New York City has paid out close to $1 billion in settlements for claims made against its police officers over the past 10 years.

"The fiancee and friends of an unarmed man killed in a 50-bullet police shooting on his wedding day said they wanted justice. The legal system gave them money — more than $7 million.

The city did what it has done time and time again: pay.

Nearly $1 billion has been paid over the past decade to resolve claims against the nation's largest police department, according to an investigation by The Associated Press. Some smaller departments also shell out tens of millions a year in payouts, but New York's spending on police claims dwarfs that of any other U.S. city.

Taxpayers foot the bill — New York officials say the payments cost less than insurance would, and officers themselves don't usually bear personal responsibility.

The $964 million in payouts covers everything from brutality cases to patrol-car wrecks to stationhouse accidents, and it includes settlements and trial awards. Some police officers have been sued again and again — including one officer at least seven times on excessive force and brutality claims. Some law firms have made it their primary business to sue the city.

City lawyers call the payouts a hard-fought cost of policing a metropolis of 8.3 million people — a price officials work to minimize through officer training and discipline. And the city has prevailed in thousands of cases, including some deadly shootings."

The amount is simply astounding, and points to a completely unaccountable body alternately brutalizing residents and paying up to settle frivolous claims.

The real issue here is not just that governments waste untold amounts of taxpayer money because they are inefficient, lack competition and overpay for purchases of good and services.

The real issue is that the city's monopoly on police services means they have little to no meaningful incentive to improve their performance.

For example, what publicly-traded company would be able to stay in business following countless claims and settlements for acts of brutality perpetrated by its employees?

The answer is zero.

At an absolute minimum, the city of New York must reign in its police department, including having a vibrant internal affairs division that regularly removes the worst of its officers from the city's employ.