The two public defenders who appeared in a violent rap video calling for cops to be executed have resigned and the director of their taxpayer-funded organization has been suspended without pay for 60 days, according to documents released Wednesday. The Post reported exclusively in December that the Bronx Defenders, which has been paid more than $40 million by the city over the past two years to represent the poor, took part in the sickening “Hands Up” video.
Ryan Napoli and Kumar Rao, the two attorneys who acted in the video and arranged for it to be filmed at their Bronx Defenders headquarters, have both resigned, according to a letter sent from the organization to the Mayor’s Office of Criminal Justice.
Bronx Defenders director Robin Steinberg was suspended and will face close scrutiny when she comes back to work.
“During the six-month period following her return, the Board will increase its oversight of Ms. Steinberg. Any unsatisfactory performance by Ms. Steinberg during this period will result in her resignation,” states a reply letter from the Office of Criminal Justice.
The letter also lays out a slate of reforms for the organization, including a review and the hiring of a general counsel to implement the recommended changes, plus “a new training program for all employees of The Bronx Defenders to ensure that its attorneys are zealously representing the interests of their clients and observing their responsibilities as officers of the court.” The video showed guns held to cops’ heads, with the lyric, “For Mike Brown and Sean Bell, a cop got to get killed.”
A probe by the city Department of Investigation found that Steinberg failed to discipline staffers after learning of the video and even lied to officials about it.
“Steinberg made misleading statements to city officials about the organization’s involvement,” the DOI report stated.
Steinberg and the Bronx Defenders did not reply to emails seeking comment. A statement on the organization’s website reads, “The Bronx Defenders never approved the music video “Hands Up”, and never saw it before it went online. We deeply regret any involvement with this video.”
