That police officers who lie deserve to be fired should go without saying. That New Orleans Police Superintendent Ronal Serpas must list that principle as a new department policy shows how corroded the police force has been in the city, says the New Orleans Times-Picayune in an editorial. The old department rules allow officers who are untruthful a couple of times to get away with just reprimands. Under a zero-tolerance standard to go in effect next week, any police officer who lies on the job or who files a false police report can be fired immediately.
“If you lie, you die,” Superintendent Serpas said in announcing the new standard. “If you tell this Police Department a lie about anything, you will be terminated.” The new rule for disciplining rogue officers is part of a 65-point police reform plan the superintendent and Mayor Mitch Landrieu announced this week. The measures are a welcome strategy to try to turn around one of the worst and most brutal police departments in America, says the newspaper.