Thread by @reveal

1/ For six months, more than 30 newsrooms have been tracking down the names on a secret list of nearly 12,000 current, former, and aspiring CA police officers with criminal convictions.

We were among those newsrooms.

Here’s what we’ve found so far: revealnews.org/episodes/the-s…

2/ More than 600 officers have been convicted of a crime in the last decade. That’s an average of more than one a week.

The most common charges: DUI and domestic violence.

Eighty officers with rap sheets are still employed today. mercurynews.com/2019/11/10/cal…

3/ We found that it’s common for police facing domestic violence-related charges to plead down to nonviolent crimes, like disturbing another person “by loud and unreasonable noise.”

That way, they can keep their guns – and keep enforcing the law in CA. mercurynews.com/2019/11/10/the…

4/ Twenty former officers accused of murder turned up on the state’s list of convicted cops. They include:

*Two officers who beat inmate Michael Tyree to death in 2015
*The officer who shot Oscar Grant, an unarmed black man, in 2009

mercurynews.com/2019/11/10/cal…

5/ California is one of five states that don’t “decertify” officers, effectively taking away their cop licenses.

That leaves hiring decisions up to police chiefs like Graham Hill, who hired his brother-in-law, despite a history of domestic violence. mercurynews.com/2019/11/10/cal…

6/ The lack of state oversight allowed one “rogue” police dept in CA’s Central Valley to hire police who had ...

*been investigated for child porn
*been caught up in an LAPD burglary ring
*pulled a gun on a stepdaughter’s friends

mercurynews.com/2019/11/11/how…

7/ @voiceofsandiego explains, in stark detail, how police in San Diego County accused of serious crimes plead to lesser charges and keep their jobs.

Including one who says there’s no such thing as a “real genuine victim” of domestic violence.
voiceofsandiego.org/topics/public-…

8/ A @voiceofsandiego review of local domestic violence cases finds prosecutors sometimes fighting orders that allow cops to keep their guns and go back to work.

But sometimes not.

voiceofsandiego.org/topics/public-…

9/ In Riverside County, two police officers were charged with multiple felonies in separate domestic violence incidents. One got fired; the other kept his job.

@MyDesert investigates why:
desertsun.com/story/news/cri…

10/ @sacbee_news found that more than 1,000 California police officers misused sensitive background check databases in the last decade, digging up information on people like a romantic rival and a girlfriend's tenants.

Only 54 were prosecuted.
sacbee.com/news/investiga…

11/ Were police in your city or town convicted of a crime?

Find out, using this database: mercurynews.com/2019/11/10/cal…

12/ This all began w/ a list of convicted current, former, and aspiring officers that @AGBecerra claimed was a crime to possess. He told 2 reporters to destroy the document they received through a public record request – or face “legal action.”

mercurynews.com/2019/02/26/cal…

13/ Instead of destroying the list, it spawned an unprecedented reporting collaboration, including (deep breath) ...
@ucberkeleyirp @medianewsgroup @USATODAY @mcclatchy @voiceofsandiego @reveal
@pressenterprise @mercnews @ladailynews @EastBayTimes @sbsun @ivdailybulletin

14/ ... @ocregister @ChicoER @scsentinel @eurekaTS @RecordBee @MontereyHerald @sacbee_news @SLOTribune @mercedsunstar @FresnoBee @MyDesert @BreakingNews_RS @rgj @salnews @vcstar @vtdnews @marinij mercurynews.com/2019/11/10/cal… (and others, too.)

15/ This is an ongoing investigation, and we’ll continue to add stories to this thread as they’re published.

For all of the latest stories, subscribe to our newsletter: revealnews.org/newsletter

16/ NEW from @ladailynews 21 Los Angeles police officers were convicted of crimes; about half for felony sex crimes, domestic violence or other assaults. dailynews.com/2019/11/12/sex…

17/ NEW from @voiceofsandiego:

"An @SanDiegoPD sergeant was convicted of stalking a fellow officer. He was allowed to keep his job. She was painted as a 'drama queen' in court." voiceofsandiego.org/topics/public-…