Bias Against NYC Minority Cops Costs City $20 Million
/The city has agreed to pay up to $20 million to settle a
class-action suit charging that the NYPD discriminated against minority
officers in its hiring and employment practices, The Post has learned.
Manhattan federal Judge Lewis Kaplan just approved the terms of the
settlement following four years of fitful negotiations. "It is my hope
that this settlement will play some small part in making New York's
Finest even finer," Kaplan said in a Sept. 10 hearing, according to new
court papers. Under the deal, 1,199 Latino and black officers who filed
discrimination claims through last year are eligible for compensation.
The federal suit -- initiated in 1999 by the Latino Officers Association
-- alleged that the NYPD subjected Latino and African-American officers
to "disparate" disciplinary treatment, a "hostile work environment" and
retaliation for filing complaints of discrimination. [more 
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