Involved Shot CO
COBA Stops Traffic In Protection Beef

By REUVEN BLAU

Correction Officers' Benevolent Association President Norman Seabrook blocked traffic near Rikers Island for miles Feb. 8 while distributing literature to his members blasting the Correction Department for contemplating pulling a security detail for an officer who was shot four times in a dispute over a parking spot.

NORMAN SEABROOK: Harsh words for Horn.

"The bottom line is the Chief of the Department [Carolyn Thomas] dropped the ball on this," he said during a phone interview several hours after the early-morning disruption. "When you have a Correction Officer shot numerous times and the perp has not been apprehended ... the Correction Officer should be allowed to have protection."

'A Misunderstanding'

The department denied considering removing CO Brent Edwards's security detail at Kings County Hospital. "I believe there was a misunderstanding," said DOC's chief spokesman Stephen Morello. "He has had security since he arrived at the hospital. He will continue to have it."

Officer Edwards, who was off-duty at the time of the shooting, was hit three times in the leg and once in the arm during a parking disagreement with another man on Feb. 6, police said. He is in stable condition.

The incident occurred on Rogers Ave. in Brooklyn. Authorities are looking for a male suspect in a dark-colored car who sped away following the shooting.

Mr. Seabrook contended that the department's decision was reached only after he and the union's 11 executive board members began handing out flyers at the entrance of Francis R. Buono Memorial Bridge at 4 a.m. "I guess they would say that after our show of strength," Mr. Seabrook asserted. "It would be foolish of them not to."

Island Entrapment

MARTIN F. HORN: Non-visit a 'bad signal'?

The protest prevented officers from leaving and entering Rikers Island just as the overnight shift was ending, creating havoc for the nearby roads.

It will also cost the department, which was forced to pay overtime to keep officers on the island who were waiting to be relieved by their incoming colleagues, Mr. Morello said. "I don't have an estimate yet, but obviously it's in the thousands or tens of thousands of dollars," he added. "We kept an entire shift there."

The episode blocked traffic all the way to Shea Stadium and required the city to cordon off several entrances on the Grand Central Parkway in order to alleviate congestion. COBA officials stayed on the bridge talking to their members until 9 a.m.

It is unclear why police officials didn't stop Mr. Seabrook and his fellow union officers from blocking traffic. A spokesman from the Mayor's Office declined to comment on the incident.

Critics of DOC Commissioner Martin F. Horn, who also heads the city's Probation Department, have argued that he has gone too far to placate Mr. Seabrook. COBA was one of only two public-employee unions to endorse Mayor Bloomberg's first campaign for office.

Running Hot and Cold

Commissioner Horn and Mr. Seabrook have had a love-hate relationship over the past five years. Shortly after he was named Commissioner, Mayor Bloomberg announced plans to layoff hundreds of Correction Officers to help the city cut costs during its fiscal crisis after 9/11.

The layoffs, which also affected other city agencies, infuriated Mr. Seabrook, who later demanded that Mr. Horn resign. During that dispute, Mr. Seabrook also blocked traffic near Rikers Island. The laid-off Correction Officers, however, were later rehired and the two men have since had a publicly cordial relationship.

But last week Mr. Seabrook ripped the Commissioner for failing to visit Officer Edwards in the hospital. "That sends a very bad signal," Mr. Seabrook said. "You don't find it important enough to visit a Correction Officer who was shot several times?"

Sources indicated that last week's protest may have also been tied to Mr. Seabrook's growing displeasure with Ms. Thomas, who was promoted to Chief of Department in March 2006.

Asked if prior disagreements with Ms. Thomas played a role, Mr. Seabrook responded, "I'm not going to air all of the laundry at this point."

The Rikers Problem

Mr. Morello said Mr. Seabrook's traffic-halting demonstration "was an excellent example of how vulnerable we are with our dependence on Rikers Island." There is only one 4,200-foot bridge leading to the island, which is also located dangerously close to LaGuardia Airport. "We need to be able to move forward with our plan to reduce our capacity on Rikers Island," Mr. Morello remarked.

The DOC has a comprehensive $650 million plan to build and renovate jails in Brooklyn and The Bronx, which will help cut inmate transportation time to courts, place them closer to their families, and create contingency housing.

Mr. Seabrook mocked the department's response. "Why doesn't he put it next to his house?" he suggested, referring to Mr. Horn.

The DOC's plan, which calls for building 4,700 replacement beds, has broad labor support. It has been hailed by COBA and by the other unions representing correction personnel, as well as by the Legal Aid Society's Prisoners' Rights Project, a group that has frequently been at odds with DOC.