Contact: Colleen Roche (212) 788-2958
Curt Ritter (212) 788-2971
Mayor Rudolph W. Giuliani today announced the appointment of Frank H. Wohl as a member and designated Chair of the Civilian Complaint Review Board (CCRB). Mr. Wohl replaces Mel P. Barkan, whose resignation is effective on August 31, 1998.
"Frank Wohl brings a tremendous amount of experience to this important post," said Mayor Giuliani. "Frank has an exceptional background as a lawyer, administrator, and former federal prosecutor. Like his predecessors, Frank's background and understanding of the law and law enforcement will prove to be of immense value to the Board. He is focused and works well with people and I want to thank him for his commitment to the City and for the time and energy he will commit to the position."
Mr. Wohl said, "I am looking forward to joining in the important work of the Civilian Complaint Review Board. Under my predecessors the Board has accomplished a great deal toward providing fair and prompt resolution of complaints, as well as achieving the Board's other goals. I hope that the next three years will see continued progress."
Mr. Wohl, a graduate of Dartmouth College and the University of Chicago Law School, is currently a partner at Lankler, Siffert & Wohl, a litigation law firm in New York City. He served as the Assistant United States Attorney for the Southern District of New York from 1971 to 1979, where he was Deputy Chief of the Criminal Division and then Chief of the Civil Division. Mr. Wohl served as the Federal RICO Administrator of the Fulton Fish Market, a position to which he was appointed by the United States District Court, Southern District of New York, from 1988 to 1992. The same court appointed Mr. Wohl to serve as a temporary receiver of Volume Investors, Inc. in 1985 and as a member of the United States District Court, Southern District of New York ,Grievance Committee in 1997.
The Civilian Complaint Review Board is an independent Mayoral agency with the authority to investigate complaints by members of the public against members of the New York City Police Department that allege misconduct involving the use of excessive or unnecessary force, abuse of authority, discourtesy, or the use of offensive language. Created as a separate agency on July 5, 1993, the Board consists of 13 members -- five representatives appointed directly by the Mayor, five representatives appointed upon designation of the City Council and three representatives appointed upon the designation of the New York City Police Commissioner.
Last October Mayor Giuliani signed an Executive Order to ensure the timeliness and effectiveness of the CCRB complaint investigation process and insure that complainants are apprised of the status of complaints in a timely manner. In September, after reviewing the operation of the CCRB with members of the Board and his Task Force on Police/Community Relations, the Mayor added $1.5 million to the CCRB budget to improve its ability to investigate, manage, report, train staff and engage in community outreach.
During Mel Barkan's tenure as Chair, the backlog of CCRB cases was reduced by over 75%, the requisite time to complete CCRB investigations was reduced by nearly 60% and the CCRB investigative staff grew from 58 to 95. During that time the CCRB also developed a mediation program and conducted valuable studies regarding the use of pepper spray and hollow point bullets.