Former Suffolk Police Chief James Burke Sentenced to Federal Prison

Former Suffolk County Police Chief James Burke was sentenced Wednesday to 46 months in federal prison for assault and obstruction of justice, according to the U.S. Attorney’s Office of Eastern New York.

Burke, 52, of Smithtown, was also sentenced to three years of supervised release.

Burke assaulted a man in custody in 2012, conspired to cover up the assault and obstructed a federal civil rights investigation on the incident, according to the U.S. Attorney’s Office.

U.S. Attorney Robert L. Capers said this sentencing shows that no one is above the law, not even the Suffolk County Police Department's highest-ranking uniformed officer.

“During his tenure as the highest ranking uniformed officer in the Suffolk County Police Department, James Burke considered himself untouchable," Capers said in a statement. "He abused his authority by brazenly assaulting a handcuffed prisoner, he pressured subordinates to lie to cover up his criminal acts, and he attempted to thwart the civil rights investigation into his conduct."

Burke pleaded guilty in February to a civil rights violation and conspiracy to obstruct justice. He was arrested and arraigned in December 2015.

Burke's lawyer requested that the judge not impose any jail sentence so he could care for his sick mother, according to Newsday.

According to the indictment and court filings, Christopher Loeb, of Smithtown, was arrested on Dec. 14, 2012 at his mother’s home for a variety of probation violations. During the arrest and search, officers found large amounts of merchandise that were stolen from Burke’s SCPD-issued SUV and a dozen other vehicles.

It was discovered that Loeb stole the following items from Burke’s vehicle: a gun belt, several magazines of ammunition, a box of cigars, a humidor and a canvas bag that contained toiletries, clothing and other items, according to the government.

Following this discovery, Burke entered the Smithtown home with permission to retrieve his items and then drove to SCPD’s Fourth Precinct where detectives had begun interrogating Loeb, who was handcuffed and chained to an eyebolt fastened to the floor.

Burke then allegedly assaulted Loeb, kicking him in the head and body, thereby violating his civil rights, and pressured the detectives who witnessed the assault to cover up the event, according to the U.S. Attorney’s Office.

Burke continued to cover up this assault when the FBI and the U.S. Attorney’s Office opened an investigation in 2013, the government said.

The police chief and detectives even agreed on a false version of events that would conceal the assault, which led to one of those detectives lying under oath, according the U.S. Attorney’s Office.

FBI Assistant Director-in-Charge Diego Rodriguez said Burke took a “shortcut on the path to justice” when at a crossroads between right and wrong.

Burke’s time in prison will be 35 months if counting the 11 months of time served he already served, according to News12.

“Burke’s abuse of power and efforts to obstruct justice not only threatened to undermine the integrity of a federal investigation, but also the reputation of all the Suffolk County police officers who value the laws they are sworn to uphold," FBI Assistant Director-in-Charge William F. Sweeney said. "As evidenced by today’s sentence, Burke, and others, are reminded that this type of behavior won’t go unpunished.”

Patch file photo