An internal state police panel of accident experts will decide if Governor Corzine's driver was at fault in last week's crash, and only the state police superintendent will say if he will face disciplinary action. That has some experts wondering if the state police should be the only ones reviewing an accident where their driver was speeding and the governor not wearing his seat belt. In some cases, courts have approved outside monitors to review police actions to ensure public accountability, experts noted.
Robert Galantucci, a Hackensack-based defense attorney who specializes in representing police officers, said the internal panel is a reasonable beginning. "Every police department has an internal affairs department and, frankly, investigates their own," Galantucci said. "It's certainly a start. Should it be the final review? Probably not." Resolving the matter with only a review by the trooper's colleagues would be "tough for the public to accept," Galantucci said. |