NYPD Rejects FOI Request for FOI Handbook

Says its privileged attorney-client information

I have written a number of times about ongoing difficulties with the New York Police Department's FOIL Unit. From rejecting routine requests to claiming "inability to locate" documents even when provided with a form number, NYPD seems hellbent on obstructing access to its records.

But this latest rejection beats all, and flies in the face of Commissioner Bratton's numerous public statements since assuming office that "there should be no secrets in the NYPD."

Last week, NYPD's freedom of information squad determined that its own handbook is exempt from disclosure under FOIL, New York's public records statute.