An inconvenient cop

An inconvenient cop

“My journey in the NYPD taught me that real change requires sacrifice and sometimes, standing alone against the tide.”

(My sincere apologies for this longer-than-usual message…)

But those were the words of former NYPD officer Lieutenant Edwin Raymond, who became a New York police officer in 2008, only to discover that rookies were mandated to make 4 arrests, 10 stop and frisks, and issue 10 summons a month.

Arrest quotas. He couldn’t believe it.

Cut to his first day on the job: he’s hiding in a cramped subway storage room with 3 other officers, peeking through the vents.

And as soon as a black or brown teenager jumps the turnstile—summons! And if one of them has a warrant—arrest!

Why black or brown? Because they were the least likely to have the resources to fight the charges, so cops preyed on them.

It was the bread and butter of meeting your monthly quotas.

Meanwhile, these kids were now in the criminal justice system for life.

And if you grew a conscience and refused to meet your quota, you didn’t get vacation. You couldn’t take the night off to watch your kid in little league football.

But most viciously—if you didn’t meet your quota, you weren’t promoted. You remained a beat cop, hiding in those musty storage rooms. Indefinitely.

While most cops just did what they had to do, this quota system was unacceptable to Edwin, a second-generation Haitian immigrant who had been stopped and frisked multiple times as a teenager in Brooklyn, even though he was a good kid.

Now he understood why. And he couldn’t turn a blind eye.

Instead, he started recording conversations with the higher-ups about the quota system. And he became an NYPD whistleblower, along with 12 other officers.

Edwin’s book, An Inconvenient Cop, details his harrowing journey of exposing the quota system, and all of the dangers that he faced.

His story, which I originally saw in the award-winning documentary Crime + Punishment, was one of my original inspirations for starting a podcast.

I felt called to talk to people like Edwin—people who put everything on the line in the name of making the world better.

I’m honored to now have that platform, and to introduce you to one of my primary inspirations for starting it.

And if you’re a fan of this show, you’re going to love this conversation.

It was emotional, poignant, funny at times, and shocking to hear that I could’ve been arrested for my past subway behavior back when I lived in New York.

I hope you take the time to listen to this episode today.

I know it will inspire you to take a leap of faith in the direction of whatever’s been in your heart.

And make sure to grab a copy of Edwin’s book, An Inconvenient Cop.

Light
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You can also watch this episode on Youtube.