OK to guard city streets, not tunnels

reviewing the selection process for police recruits.

“The review and revision process for police recruitment standards is currently midstream, with multiple aspects still being studied and under consideration,” the PA said. “Medical and psychological standards are among those still being reviewed, with the goal of implementing a revised set of standards in early 2018.”

The Port Authority outsources psychological testing to a private company, the name of which is a closely guarded secret.

“We have no idea who they are. The police are not involved in that side of it at all,” said the highranking source. “If we ask, the Port Authority tells us, ‘It’s none of your business.’ ”

Experts say outsourcing the psych exams could lead to the skewed test numbers.

“Private companies have a vested interest in accommodating their clients. What happens, unfortunately, is that they may target certain answers and weed out candidates that a psychologist steeped in the law enforcement culture may see differently,” said Daniel Rudofossi, a licensed psychologist who was once clinical director for the NYPD Medical Division’s Membership Assistance Program.

When John was told he was medically barred from becoming a Port Authority cop, he appealed. He was then sent a form letter claiming he did not “meet the psychological requirements.”

“This does not mean you are not qualified for other positions within or outside of the Port Authority or any other endeavors you choose to pursue,” the letter said.

“I don’t understand it,” the high-ranking source said about the failure rate. “They’re just molding their applicant numbers to whatever they think they need that given year.”

The Port Authority can be overly selective because it hires so few applicants. Only 120 cadets were welcomed into the Port Authority Police Academy in January. After 26 weeks of study and physical training, 83 of them graduated July 28.

The Port Authority currently has 1,657 rank-and-file police officers. The entire Port Authority Police Department — including supervisors — tops out at 2,045.

Eugene O’Donnell, a retired NYPD cop and professor at John Jay College of Criminal Justice, said the Port Authority shouldn’t use the psych exam as a catchall excuse for dismissing candidates.

“They use a psychological exam as a rubber stamp,” O’Donnell said. “But it comes with a stigma when all they are saying is, ‘You don’t work for us.’

“It’s not about sanity and it’s not about fitness,” he said. “Just because they deem someone unsuitable for their agency, that does not make them insane or dangerous.”