PAB Issues Report on Cost of Misconduct, Says Rochester Paying Higher Amounts for Claims

The Rochester Police Accountability Board (PAB) Tuesday issued a report claiming the City of Rochester underestimated the cost of civil claims against the city and exhibits a lack of transparency in the process.

The report—The Cost of Misconduct: A Proposal for Change—analyzes the cost of civil claims against the city for the period from 2011 through 2023 and outlines a series of recommendations to the Rochester Police Department.

“The City [of Rochester] frequently underestimates its budget for general insurance and judgments and claims. Additionally, there is inconsistency in the transparency regarding the allocation of these budgeted amounts, with unclear distinctions between administrative charges, premiums, and reserve funds,” the report reads.

The report, which is a draft, shows a $27 million difference between what was budgeted during the period from 2011 to 2023 and what was actually spent.

According to data from the report, the City of Rochester pays out significantly more money per claim than its neighboring cities, Buffalo and Syracuse.

“Both the City of Buffalo and the City of Syracuse have a greater number of overall claims than Rochester. However, when examining both the total amount paid per resident and the average amount paid per resident, the City of Rochester exhibited higher figures compared to Buffalo and Syracuse,” the report says.

The report identifies several variables the PAB says impacts the amounts of money paid on a claim, including the “impact of claim types”, the “impact of litigation,” and the “lack of a democratic process” in paying claims.

“Claims filed for Discrimination, Wrongful Death, Section 1983, or Bodily Injury significantly increases the associated cost,” the report says. “Corporation Counsels decision to litigate as opposed to settle civil claims is correlated with greater cost."

The PAB does not make any recommendations regarding legislative changes but notes that the power to settle claims brought against the City Rochester lies solely with the Corporate Council.

“… this decision in cities like Buffalo and Syracuse involves other municipal bodies, like the City Council, ensuring a more democratic process,” notes the report.

The report shows a $7 million discrepancy between what was paid out from 2012 to 2023 and what reported and accuses Corporate Council of not cooperating with their inquiries.

According to annual budget documents, the City of Rochester paid out $48,755,960 from the General Insurance line item since 2012. Based on the dataset created by the City Law Department, the PAB calculated that that the city had paid out $41,845,222 since 2012.

The PAB found that the city paid out 78 claims without entering the amount paid but says Corporate Council declined to give them information regarding these claims.

The report looks at all claims brought against the City of Rochester and identified the following departments as having the highest payouts: The Police Department, Environmental Services, Fire Department, and Neighborhood and Business Development.

Despite comprising only 37% of the total claims against the city, claims against the Police Department account for over 60% of the total payouts.

According to the report, the five most common types of claims filed against the RPD were property damage, violation of civil rights, motor vehicle accident, bodily injury, and excessive force.

“24% of payouts came from cases that were converted to litigation,” the report said.

The following recommendations for RPD were outlined in the report:

• Implement a quality assurance plan to ensure that all civil claims data in IAPro, the Professional Standards Section database, match the data in the City Law Department's database;

• Collect data on the outcomes of civil claims in IAPro;

• Commence a PSS (Professional Standards Section) investigation when a claim is paid out or converted to litigation within 18 months of the alleged incident;

• Publish an annual review of patterns of civil claims against the RPD and/or its officers from IAPro data; and

• Incorporate the outcomes of civil claims into its early intervention system.

There will be a public comment period from September 9, 2024 to October 9, 2024.

Comments can be submitted online at https://forms.office.com/r/tndiRTvSUx or by phone at 585-280-3203, by email at PABFeedback@CityofRochester.gov, Written comments can be sent to 245 E. Main Street, Rochester, NY 14604

Following the public comment period, PAB staff says they will analyze and incorporate the feedback into the recommendations then present the revised report to the Board to approve, reject, or request a revision. If the Board votes to approve the policy recommendations, the final approved version will be published at www.rocpab.org and transmitted to City Council, the Mayor, and the Chief of Police.

The Chief of Police is required to respond to the recommendations within 30 days. The Chief’s response will be published at www.rocpab.org.

Read the full report HERE.