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December 5, 2008
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NYPD, NFL Continue To Disagree Over Handling Of Burress Shooting

NYPD Finds Fault With NFL's
Reporting Of Burress Incident
The N.Y. Police Department (NYPD) "remains at odds with the NFL" over how the incident involving Giants WR Plaxico Burress accidentally shooting himself Saturday morning was "handled in the subsequent hours," according to Schmidt & Baker of the N.Y. TIMES. NFL VP/Security Milt Ahlerich Wednesday said that NFL security officials "contacted high-ranking members of the police department the morning after the shooting as part of an effort to alert the police to what had occurred." Ahlerich added that the authorities "'did not have a case' until they were contacted by NFL officials." NYPD Deputy Commissioner of Public Information Paul Browne "took issue on Thursday with Ahlerich's statements, and in pointed language said that the league had initially called several lower-level police personnel to ascertain what the authorities knew about the shooting and did not offer up much information of its own." Schmidt & Baker note Browne's statements "represented a new chapter in the criticism that the police and Mayor Michael R. Bloomberg have directed at the Giants, the NFL and the hospital where Burress was treated." At the "heart of the criticism is the fact that the police were not immediately informed of the shooting and that others seemed to know more than they did." Browne said that the "notion that the NFL security officials 'called us to provide details is not the case, and they did not tell us what they knew." Browne: "Don't try and make it sound like you notified us of a shooting and provided us with details; the press notified us. They weren't making a notification, they weren't calling to make a notification. They were calling in to see if we had heard. ... We deal with people who don't provide us with information all the time, but they are usually career criminals." Browne added, "The highest-ranking official who was contacted was a lieutenant; that's not high. Don't describe a lieutenant as a high-ranking official; no lieutenant would describe themselves as such." The NFL in a statement said, "We continue to cooperate with the investigation and will assist the NYPD in any way we can" (N.Y. TIMES, 12/5).

GIANTS' STORY: On Long Island, Neil Best writes, "Would the Giants have been moved to release a detailed description of Friday night's events if not for aggressive reporters seeking to figure things out for themselves?" The team "insists it has done what it can under the circumstances." Giants VP/Communications Pat Hanlon said that the team's "priorities have been cooperating with NYPD and NFL investigations and preparing to play football." Hanlon: "In a situation like this, there is a great deal of misinformation, rumor and innuendo, and if we can help the media sift through all of that without compromising the most important aspect of all this, the police and league investigations, then we do it" (NEWSDAY, 12/5).


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