The CCRB repainted a brand-new meeting room because a civil-liberties lawyer complained it looked “prison-like” — further proving that the agency kowtows to cop-bashers, a police-union leader charged Tuesday.
NYCLU lawyer Chris Dunn objected to the bright orange paint job during an April 9 meeting that followed the Civilian Complaint Review Board’s move to new headquarters in lower Manhattan, according to an official transcript.
“Starting with the paint scheme, which given that ‘Orange is the New Black,’ it’s a little bit unfortunate prison-like message that gets sent,” he said, referring to the popular Netflix show.
By the time of the next meeting, on May 14, the offending hue had been replaced with light purple.
In a Tuesday letter to CCRB Chairman Richard Emery, the head of the Patrolmen’s Benevolent Association ripped the board for letting “advocacy groups” dictate “such minor operational details” — and called it emblematic of the “de facto control” they exercise.
“While standing alone, this fact may seem less significant; viewed together with other actions, it raises serious concerns regarding the CCRB’s fulfillment of its mandate to be independent,” PBA President Pat Lynch wrote in the letter obtained by The Post.
Lynch accused the CCRB of leaking internal documents to anti-cop groups, and slammed plans to create a phone app to make it easier to file “false and frivolous complaints” against cops.
The CCRB wouldn’t comment on Lynch’s letter, but regarding the orange paint, Emery said: “It doesn’t matter who gives us good suggestions. If they’re good, we listen and we act.”