HPD officers accused of bad behavior

News of alleged wrongdoing by HPD officers has dominated the local news this weekend.

The Chronicle reports that HPD's internal affairs division has busted an officer for taking bribes:

A veteran Houston police officer arrested Friday in an undercover bribery sting is among the highest paid and most-disciplined employees on the force, city records show.

The officer, Alfred Alaniz, is charged with felony bribery after police allege he took cash during a traffic stop from an undercover officer posing as a civilian motorist.

A complaint about Alaniz, a 20-year veteran accident investigator, prompted the Houston Police Department's internal affairs division to conduct the roadside sting.

"The department had received information that he was accepting money in exchange for not writing citations," said Assistant Chief Michael Dirden, who heads internal affairs.

KRIV-26's Isiah Carey reports that HPD's internal affairs division is also investigating the arrest of a local political activist on a gun charge, even though the woman has a concealed carry permit. Carey reports that the woman says she was tipped off by an HPD sergeant that the arrest was retaliation for a complaint she registered with the department's internal affairs division. The video report is available here. Carey promises to stay on top of HPD's internal affairs investigation.

We're always hesitant to blame cops first, as some people do, in part because they're doing a hard job in tough circumstances right now (thanks to the manpower shortage and surge in bad guys). But if there are cops behaving badly, here's hoping that the internal affairs division gets it sorted out -- quickly.

BLOGVERSATION: Isiah Carey's Insite.

Posted by Kevin Whited @ 01/21/07 12:50 PM | Houston Miscellany | Technorati | Sphere | Comments (18)

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