DA, defenders work on ‘suspect’ cop list

A database that tracks “suspect” police officers is a “topic of hot discussion” this week since Suffolk DA Rachael Rollins said she was adding the names of nine current and retired Boston police officers accused of stealing more than $200,000 taxpayer dollars in a multi-year overtime scam.

Informally referred to as a “Brady list” or “do-not-call list,” the district attorney’s Law Enforcement Automatic Discovery — or LEAD — database flags officers who have been indicted or charged with federal offenses that Rollins said could speak to an officers’ credibility.

“Whatever testimony they may have given in any Suffolk County prosecution during that time is now suspect,” Rollins said.

The Suffolk database currently lists “dozens” of officers, Rollins said.

“Of course they are innocent until proven guilty, but remember, a grand jury has heard this testimony. Yes, it’s a lower burden than we have at trial, but they have cleared that hurdle,” Rollins said Thursday during an appearance on WGBH’s “Morning Edition.”

“That database is a topic of hot discussion now,” she said.

In her quest to create “uniformity” in the criminal legal system, Rollins said she going a step further and collaborating with defense lawyers. Her office has notified the Committee for Public Counsel Services and the Massachusetts Association of Criminal Defense Lawyers.

“Those entities can begin reviewing cases to see what role, if any, these officers may have played in matters they have defended,” she added. “I intend to right any wrongs that have been created because of potential misconduct.”