Reporter reviewed more than 10,000 New York police misconduct files

A New York Times reporter said they spent the past two and a half years requesting and reviewing more than 10,000 police misconduct files from roughly 500 police agencies across New York State, an effort described in a Times Insider account published Jan. 28, 2026. The work began in 2023 with a records request to the Orange County District Attorney's Office for so‑called 'Brady files' about officers' potential credibility issues.

The reporter said they expected a few files but received more than 1,600 pages covering misconduct by hundreds of officers. The account notes that New York law kept most police personnel records secret starting in 1976 until the law was repealed in 2020. After the repeal, many departments began making records available, while others resisted by demanding large payments, providing lengthy timelines or ignoring requests.

The Democrat and Chronicle of Rochester filed statewide requests and used the records it obtained to publish an investigation called 'Driving Force' about on‑duty police car crashes. The reporter said they filed more than 800 requests in total, appealed almost all denials and in some instances sued to force compliance.

The Times continues to represent the reporter in a suit against the Erie County Sheriff’s Office.

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