Mar 10, 2008 3:37 pm US/Central
Police Furious Over New Web Site RateMyCop.com
SAN FRANCISCO (CBS) ―
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More than 130,000 names are in the RateMyCop.com database, according to the site's cofounder.
AP
Police agencies from coast to coast are furious with a new Web site. RateMyCop.com has the names of thousands of officers, and many believe it is putting them in danger.
Officer Hector Basurto, vice president of the Latino Police Officers Association, recently learned about the site. "I'd like to see it gone," he said in a report by CBS station KOVR-TV in Sacramento.
"Having a Web site like this out there puts a lot of law enforcement in danger," he said. "It exposes us out there."
Kevin Martin, vice president of the San Francisco Police Officers Association, agrees. "Will they be able to access our home addresses, home phone numbers, marital status, whether or not we have children? That's always a big concern for us," he said.
Creators of the site say no personal information will be on the site. They gathered officers' names, which are public information, from more than 450 police agencies nationwide. Some listings also have badge numbers along with the officers' names.
The site helps people rate more than 130,000 officers by rating them on authority, fairness and satisfaction, site cofounder Rebecca Costell said in a statement.
She adds, "Our Web site's purpose is to break the stereotype that people have that cops are all bad by having officers become responsible for their actions."
The site is so new that many police agencies in California's Bay Area are not aware of it. San Francisco police say they have no connection with the site and would not take any of its comments seriously.
Police associations that represent more than 100,000 police and sheriffs in California are now seeking legislation to see if they can eliminate the site altogether. They say that officers who are rated face unfair maligning without any opportunity to defend themselves.
The CPCA will work with other law enforcement associations to pursue legislation to stop the Web site. Constitutional attorney and former San Francisco Police Commissioner Peter Keane said eliminating the site is difficult due to the First Amendment.
"Any kind of publication is protected as long as it's not publishing privileged information," he said.
(© MMIX, CBS Broadcasting Inc. All Rights Reserved.)
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