Bernard Bailey "Bernie" Kerik (born September 4, 1955) is a former
New York City Police CommissionerThe New York City Police Commissioner is the head of the New York City Police Department, appointed by the Mayor of New York City. Governor Theodore Roosevelt, in one of his final acts before becoming Vice President of the United States in March 1901, signed legislation replacing the Police Board...
,
Secretary of Homeland SecurityThe United States Secretary of Homeland Security is the head of the United States Department of Homeland Security, the body concerned with protecting the American homeland and the safety of American citizens. The Secretary is a member of the President's Cabinet. The position was created by the...
nominee, and now a federal felon. Kerik was New York City Police Commissioner from 2000 to 2001, under
MayorThe Mayor of the City of New York is head of the executive branch of New York City's government. The mayor's office administers all city services, public property, police and fire protection, most public agencies, and enforces all city and state laws within New York City.The budget overseen by the...
Rudy GiulianiRudolph William Louis "Rudy" Giuliani KBE is an American lawyer, businessman, and politician from New York. He served as Mayor of New York City from 1994 to 2001....
. In December 2004,
PresidentThe President of the United States of America is the head of state and head of government of the United States. The president leads the executive branch of the federal government and is the commander-in-chief of the United States Armed Forces....
George W. BushGeorge Walker Bush is an American politician who served as the 43rd President of the United States, from 2001 to 2009. Before that, he was the 46th Governor of Texas, having served from 1995 to 2000....
nominated Kerik as United States Secretary of Homeland Security. A week later, Kerik withdrew his nomination, explaining that he had employed an
illegal immigrantIllegal immigration is the migration into a nation in violation of the immigration laws of that jurisdiction. Illegal immigration raises many political, economical and social issues and has become a source of major controversy in developed countries and the more successful developing countries.In...
as a
nannyA nanny, childminder or child care provider, is an individual who provides care for one or more children in a family as a service...
; subsequently, numerous allegations surfaced which would likely have led to a
confirmationAdvice and consent is an English phrase frequently used in enacting formulae of bills and in other legal or constitutional contexts, describing a situation in which the executive branch of a government enacts something previously approved of by the legislative branch.-General:The expression is...
battle in the
SenateThe United States Senate is the upper house of the bicameral legislature of the United States, and together with the United States House of Representatives comprises the United States Congress. The composition and powers of the Senate are established in Article One of the U.S. Constitution. Each...
. In 2006, Kerik pleaded guilty to two unrelated ethics violations after an investigation by the Office of the Bronx District Attorney, and was ordered to pay $221,000.
A
grand juryA grand jury is a type of jury that determines whether a criminal indictment will issue. Currently, only the United States retains grand juries, although some other common law jurisdictions formerly employed them, and most other jurisdictions employ some other type of preliminary hearing...
of the
United States District Court for the Southern District of New YorkThe United States District Court for the Southern District of New York is a federal district court. Appeals from the Southern District of New York are taken to the United States Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit The United States District Court for the Southern District of New York (in case...
issued a 16-count
indictmentAn indictment , in the common-law legal system, is a formal accusation that a person has committed a crime. In jurisdictions that maintain the concept of felonies, the serious criminal offence is a felony; jurisdictions that lack the concept of felonies often use that of an indictable offence—an...
against Kerik on November 8, 2007, alleging
conspiracyIn the criminal law, a conspiracy is an agreement between two or more persons to break the law at some time in the future, and, in some cases, with at least one overt act in furtherance of that agreement...
, mail fraud,
wire fraudMail and wire fraud is a federal crime in the United States. Together, 18 U.S.C. §§ 1341, 1343, and 1346 reach any fraudulent scheme or artifice to intentionally deprive another of property or honest services with a nexus to mail or wire communication....
and lying to the
Internal Revenue ServiceThe Internal Revenue Service is the revenue service of the United States federal government. The agency is a bureau of the Department of the Treasury, and is under the immediate direction of the Commissioner of Internal Revenue...
. Kerik surrendered to authorities the next day and pled not guilty to all charges. On October 20, 2009, his bail was revoked and he was jailed pending trial. On November 5, he pleaded guilty to 8 charges in a
plea bargainA plea bargain is an agreement in a criminal case whereby the prosecutor offers the defendant the opportunity to plead guilty, usually to a lesser charge or to the original criminal charge with a recommendation of a lighter than the maximum sentence.A plea bargain allows criminal defendants to...
with prosecutors who recommended a jail sentence of 27 to 33 months. Kerik was sentenced to four years in federal prison on February 18, 2010. On March 30, 2011, he lost his appeal in federal court to have his four year sentence reduced because of alleged bias by the sentencing judge.
Early life and education
Kerik was born in
NewarkNewark is the largest city in the American state of New Jersey, and the seat of Essex County. As of the 2010 United States Census, Newark had a population of 277,140, maintaining its status as the largest municipality in New Jersey. It is the 68th largest city in the U.S...
,
New JerseyNew Jersey is a state in the Northeastern and Middle Atlantic regions of the United States. , its population was 8,791,894. It is bordered on the north and east by the state of New York, on the southeast and south by the Atlantic Ocean, on the west by Pennsylvania and on the southwest by Delaware...
, the son of Patricia Joann (née Bailey) and Donald Raymond Kerik, Sr. His mother was
Irish AmericanIrish Americans are citizens of the United States who can trace their ancestry to Ireland. A total of 36,278,332 Americans—estimated at 11.9% of the total population—reported Irish ancestry in the 2008 American Community Survey conducted by the U.S. Census Bureau...
and his father was
Russian AmericanRussian Americans are primarily Americans who traces their ancestry to Russia. The definition can be applied to recent Russian immigrants to the United States, as well as to settlers of 19th century Russian settlements in northwestern America which includes today's California, Alaska and...
. His paternal grandparents emigrated from
RussiaRussia or , officially known as both Russia and the Russian Federation , is a country in northern Eurasia. It is a federal semi-presidential republic, comprising 83 federal subjects...
to a
coalCoal is a combustible black or brownish-black sedimentary rock usually occurring in rock strata in layers or veins called coal beds or coal seams. The harder forms, such as anthracite coal, can be regarded as metamorphic rock because of later exposure to elevated temperature and pressure...
mining town in Pennsylvania and changed their surname from "Kapurik". Kerik was raised
CatholicThe Catholic Church, also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the world's largest Christian church, with over a billion members. Led by the Pope, it defines its mission as spreading the gospel of Jesus Christ, administering the sacraments and exercising charity...
and grew up in
Paterson, New JerseyPaterson is a city serving as the county seat of Passaic County, New Jersey, United States. As of the 2010 United States Census, its population was 146,199, rendering it New Jersey's third largest city and one of the largest cities in the New York City Metropolitan Area, despite a decrease of 3,023...
. He attended
Eastside High SchoolEastside High School is a four-year public high school in Paterson, New Jersey, United States, that serves the eastern section of Paterson. EHS, which serves grades 9 through 12, operates as part of the Paterson Public Schools....
in Paterson, and dropped out in 1972. In July 1974 he enlisted in the
United States ArmyThe United States Army is the main branch of the United States Armed Forces responsible for land-based military operations. It is the largest and oldest established branch of the U.S. military, and is one of seven U.S. uniformed services...
and received a General Educational Development (GED) certificate from the State of
North CarolinaNorth Carolina is a state located in the southeastern United States. The state borders South Carolina and Georgia to the south, Tennessee to the west and Virginia to the north. North Carolina contains 100 counties. Its capital is Raleigh, and its largest city is Charlotte...
while assigned to
Fort BraggFort Bragg is a major United States Army installation, in Cumberland and Hoke counties, North Carolina, U.S., mostly in Fayetteville but also partly in the town of Spring Lake. It was also a census-designated place in the 2010 census and had a population of 39,457. The fort is named for Confederate...
,
North CarolinaNorth Carolina is a state located in the southeastern United States. The state borders South Carolina and Georgia to the south, Tennessee to the west and Virginia to the north. North Carolina contains 100 counties. Its capital is Raleigh, and its largest city is Charlotte...
.
After leaving the New York City Police Department, he received a Bachelor of Science degree in Public Administration from
Empire State CollegeEmpire State College, one of the thirteen arts and science colleges of the State University of New York, is a multi-site institution offering associate, bachelor's, and master's degrees. It is primarily oriented towards the adult learner...
of the
State University of New YorkThe State University of New York, abbreviated SUNY , is a system of public institutions of higher education in New York, United States. It is the largest comprehensive system of universities, colleges, and community colleges in the United States, with a total enrollment of 465,000 students, plus...
in 2002.
Military and police service
From 1974 to 1977 Kerik served in the U.S. Army Military Police Corps. He was
stationed in KoreaUnited States Forces Korea refers to the ground, air and naval divisions of the United States armed forces stationed in South Korea....
as a
military policeMilitary police are police organisations connected with, or part of, the military of a state. The word can have different meanings in different countries, and may refer to:...
sentry dog handler and to the XVIII Airborne Corps at
Fort BraggFort Bragg is a major United States Army installation, in Cumberland and Hoke counties, North Carolina, U.S., mostly in Fayetteville but also partly in the town of Spring Lake. It was also a census-designated place in the 2010 census and had a population of 39,457. The fort is named for Confederate...
in
North CarolinaNorth Carolina is a state located in the southeastern United States. The state borders South Carolina and Georgia to the south, Tennessee to the west and Virginia to the north. North Carolina contains 100 counties. Its capital is Raleigh, and its largest city is Charlotte...
, assuming
military policeMilitary police are police organisations connected with, or part of, the military of a state. The word can have different meanings in different countries, and may refer to:...
duties and teaching hand-to-hand combat to
Special OperationsSpecial operations are military operations that are considered "special" .Special operations are typically performed independently or in conjunction with conventional military operations. The primary goal is to achieve a political or military objective where a conventional force requirement does...
and Special Forces personnel at the John F. Kennedy Unconventional Warfare Center.
Kerik was
honorably dischargedA military discharge is given when a member of the armed forces is released from their obligation to serve.-United States:Discharge or separation should not be confused with retirement; career U.S...
from the Army in July 1977 and worked briefly for the Interstate Revenue Research Center,
IndianapolisIndianapolis is the capital of the U.S. state of Indiana, and the county seat of Marion County, Indiana. As of the 2010 United States Census, the city's population is 839,489. It is by far Indiana's largest city and, as of the 2010 U.S...
,
IndianaIndiana is a US state, admitted to the United States as the 19th on December 11, 1816. It is located in the Midwestern United States and Great Lakes Region. With 6,483,802 residents, the state is ranked 15th in population and 16th in population density. Indiana is ranked 38th in land area and is...
, as an investigator before joining the
Morrison KnudsonWashington Group International was an American corporation which provided integrated engineering, construction and management services to businesses and governments around the world. Based in Boise, Idaho, it had approximately 25,000 employees working in over 40 states and more than 30 countries...
Saudi Arabia Consortium (MKSAC) in April 1978, where he was employed as a security officer at the
King Khalid Military CityKing Khalid Military City is a special city in northeastern Saudi Arabia and about 60 km south to Hafar Al-Batin City, designed and built by the Middle East Division, a unit of the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, in the 1970s and 1980s. The consultants were Brown, Daltas, and Associates in...
in
Hafar Al-BatinHafar Al-Batin is a Saudi Arabian city in the Eastern Province and located in the Northeastern region. It is located 480 km the north of Riyadh, 90 km from Kuwait border and about 70 from the Iraq border...
,
Saudi ArabiaThe Kingdom of Saudi Arabia , commonly known in British English as Saudi Arabia and in Arabic as as-Sa‘ūdiyyah , is the largest state in Western Asia by land area, constituting the bulk of the Arabian Peninsula, and the second-largest in the Arab World...
, for nearly two and a half years. Upon his return, he worked for the
Cumberland County-Demographics:As of the census of 2000, there were 302,963 people, 107,358 households, and 77,619 families residing in the county. The population density was 464 people per square mile . There were 118,425 housing units at an average density of 181 per square mile...
,
North CarolinaNorth Carolina is a state located in the southeastern United States. The state borders South Carolina and Georgia to the south, Tennessee to the west and Virginia to the north. North Carolina contains 100 counties. Its capital is Raleigh, and its largest city is Charlotte...
sheriff's office, in the patrol division and later for the City-Country Bureau of Narcotics.
From December 1981 to October 1982 and then July 1984 to July 1986 Kerik worked at the
Passaic CountyPassaic County is a county located in the U.S. state of New Jersey. As of the 2010 Census, the population was 501,226. Its county seat is Paterson...
sheriff's office, in
New JerseyNew Jersey is a state in the Northeastern and Middle Atlantic regions of the United States. , its population was 8,791,894. It is bordered on the north and east by the state of New York, on the southeast and south by the Atlantic Ocean, on the west by Pennsylvania and on the southwest by Delaware...
, He served as the department's training officer and commander of the special weapons and operations, and ultimately chief and warden of the Passaic County jail.
Kerik worked from 1982 to 1984 as chief of investigations for the security division of the
King Faisal Specialist HospitalThe King Faisal Specialist Hospital and Research Center is a hospital in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, which operates 850 beds with approximately 8,500 employees. In all there are 63 different nationalities making up the staff. The hospital is the national referral center for oncology, organ...
in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia. Six members of the hospital security staff, including Kerik, were fired and deported after an investigation in 1984 by the Saudi secret police.
In July 1986, Kerik joined the
New York City Police DepartmentThe New York City Police Department , established in 1845, is currently the largest municipal police force in the United States, with primary responsibilities in law enforcement and investigation within the five boroughs of New York City...
and was assigned to uniformed and plain clothes duty in the 14th Division in Brooklyn and in the Midtown South Precinct (Times Square). He was later transferred to the narcotics division as an
undercoverBeing undercover is disguising one's own identity or using an assumed identity for the purposes of gaining the trust of an individual or organization to learn secret information or to gain the trust of targeted individuals in order to gain information or evidence...
in Harlem, Spanish Harlem and Washington Heights and was promoted to detective in September 1990. In 1991 he was assigned to the
U.S. Department of JusticeThe United States Department of Justice , is the United States federal executive department responsible for the enforcement of the law and administration of justice, equivalent to the justice or interior ministries of other countries.The Department is led by the Attorney General, who is nominated...
, New York Drug Enforcement Task Force, Group T-43 until he was transferred to the intelligence division in February 1994, where he worked on the protective detail for then-Mayor Rudolph W. Giuliani.
Correction Commissioner – City of New York
In May 1994 Kerik was appointed to the
New York City Department of CorrectionThe New York City Department of Correction is responsible for New York City's inmates, housing the majority of them on Rikers Island. It employs 9,500 uniformed officers and 1,400 civilian staff, has 543 vehicles, and processes over 100,000 new inmates every year, retaining a population of inmates...
as the Director of the Investigations Division and was later transferred to the Commissioner's office as Executive Assistant to the Commissioner and in January 1995, he was appointed by Mayor Rudolph W. Giuliani as the First Deputy Commissioner of the Department.
In January 1998, Kerik become commissioner of the New York City Department of Correction. As corrections commissioner he was responsible for an annual budget of $835 million, a civilian and uniformed workforce of 13,000 and 133,000 annual inmate admissions in the Department's 16 jails, 15 court detention pens and four hospital prison wards, including
Rikers IslandRikers Island is New York City's main jail complex, as well as the name of the island on which it sits, in the East River between Queens and the mainland Bronx, adjacent to the runways of LaGuardia Airport. The island itself is part of the borough of the Bronx, though it is included as part of...
.
He was credited with the creation of the Total Efficiency Accountability Management System (TEAMS), a management analysis and accountability program that placed as a finalist for the
Harvard UniversityHarvard University is a private Ivy League university located in Cambridge, Massachusetts, United States, established in 1636 by the Massachusetts legislature. Harvard is the oldest institution of higher learning in the United States and the first corporation chartered in the country...
’s
John F. Kennedy School of GovernmentThe John F. Kennedy School of Government at Harvard University is a public policy and public administration school, and one of Harvard's graduate and professional schools...
Award, for Innovations in American Government for year 2000. Through TEAMS, the Department witnessed historic performance gains in virtually all areas of jail operations as a result of many new initiatives in violence reduction, overtime reduction, modernization of security equipment, an absence rate analysis program and others.
During his tenure, the Department developed a gang intelligence unit and gang tracking database, networking with local, state and federal authorities across the country. Inmate violence—defined as inmate-on-inmate stabbing and slashing incidents—were reduced by 93% FY ‘95 to FY ’99. Similarly, overtime spending in FY ‘99 decreased 45% from FY ‘95 and the uniform sick rate dropped for the same period 25%. These achievements occurred during a period when the inmate population rose to record levels, from 110,410 admissions in FY ‘94 to 133,000 in FY ‘99, a 25% increase.
In December 1997, he was also appointed by the Mayor to the New York City
Gambling Control CommissionA gaming control board , also called by various names including gambling control board, casino control board, gambling board, and gaming commission) is a government agency charged with regulating casino and other types of gaming in a defined geographical area, usually a state, and of enforcing...
. Kerik also chaired the Michael Buczek Foundation's annual fund-raiser that honors law enforcement across the nation.
Police Commissioner – City of New York
Mayor Rudolph W. Giuliani appointed Kerik the 40th
New York City Police CommissionerThe New York City Police Commissioner is the head of the New York City Police Department, appointed by the Mayor of New York City. Governor Theodore Roosevelt, in one of his final acts before becoming Vice President of the United States in March 1901, signed legislation replacing the Police Board...
on August 21, 2000.
Giuliani gave much of the credit for a drop in 2001 crime to Kerik, saying that "Commissioner Kerik took over a Police Department that was leading the country in crime declines, and somehow he was able to figure out how to create even more crime reduction and to do that against a national trend in which crime is going up in much of the rest of the country." Known in the department as the "beat-cop commissioner," Kerik frequently cruised the city at night with a security detail composed of cops who have been in shootouts, dangled from rooftops, been hit by bullets, raced into burning buildings and seen their partners die. During his time as police commissioner he made five arrests including one involving two ex-convicts – one a paroled killer, wanted for a carjacking at gunpoint in Virginia – for allegedly driving a stolen van in
HarlemHarlem is a neighborhood in the New York City borough of Manhattan, which since the 1920s has been a major African-American residential, cultural and business center. Originally a Dutch village, formally organized in 1658, it is named after the city of Haarlem in the Netherlands...
. As Police Commissioner, Kerik served on the Terrorism Committee with the
International Association of Chiefs of PoliceThe International Association of Chiefs of Police was founded in Chicago in 1893 as the National Chiefs of Police Union. The primary goal of this organization was to apprehend and return criminals who had fled the agency jurisdictions in which they were wanted...
and the Criminal Justice Advisory Board for St. John's University.
Kerik served 16 months as Commissioner, leaving office at the end of Giuliani's term on December 31, 2001.
Kerik was serving as Police Commissioner during the September 11 attacks. The twin towers of the
World Trade CenterThe original World Trade Center was a complex with seven buildings featuring landmark twin towers in Lower Manhattan, New York City, United States. The complex opened on April 4, 1973, and was destroyed in 2001 during the September 11 attacks. The site is currently being rebuilt with five new...
were destroyed in the attack, and 23 NYPD officers were killed.
Kerik was in his office when the first attack occurred and arrived at the base of Tower I about three minutes before
United Airlines Flight 175United Airlines Flight 175 was United Airlines' daily scheduled morning transcontinental flight, from Logan International Airport in Boston, Massachusetts, to Los Angeles International Airport in Los Angeles, California...
hit Tower II, showering him and his staff with debris from the burning building and plane. Giuliani arrived within minutes afterward and the two men walked to a temporary command post on West Street to meet with senior police and fire personnel.
When the south tower of the
World Trade CenterThe original World Trade Center was a complex with seven buildings featuring landmark twin towers in Lower Manhattan, New York City, United States. The complex opened on April 4, 1973, and was destroyed in 2001 during the September 11 attacks. The site is currently being rebuilt with five new...
collapsed, Giuliani, Kerik and their top aides were trapped inside a building at 75 Barclay Street. According to the
New York Daily NewsThe Daily News of New York City is the fourth most widely circulated daily newspaper in the United States with a daily circulation of 605,677, as of November 1, 2011....
, Kerik, along with his first deputy commissioner, the chief of department and other top police officials were all in close proximity to the burning towers, and dodged rubble and debris as the structures fell.
On September 18, Kerik attended a ceremony in which
GovernorThe Governor of the State of New York is the chief executive of the State of New York. The governor is the head of the executive branch of New York's state government and the commander-in-chief of the state's military and naval forces. The officeholder is afforded the courtesy title of His/Her...
George PatakiGeorge Elmer Pataki is an American politician who was the 53rd Governor of New York. A member of the Republican Party, Pataki served three consecutive four-year terms from January 1, 1995 until December 31, 2006.- Early life :...
signed legislation into law adding five new sections to the New York State Penal Law and one to the New York State Criminal Procedure Law, to address terrorist-related activity. Kerik also established the New York Metropolitan Committee on Counter Terrorism, responsible for reviewing existing security measures, technology, information exchange protocols and levels of cooperation among the participating agencies and developing recommendations for improving, facilitating and expediting the same throughout the current national crisis.
Interim Minister of Interior of Iraq
In May 2003, during
Operation Iraqi Freedom, Kerik was appointed by the
George W. BushGeorge Walker Bush is an American politician who served as the 43rd President of the United States, from 2001 to 2009. Before that, he was the 46th Governor of Texas, having served from 1995 to 2000....
Administration as the Interim Minister of Interior of
IraqIraq ; officially the Republic of Iraq is a country in Western Asia spanning most of the northwestern end of the Zagros mountain range, the eastern part of the Syrian Desert and the northern part of the Arabian Desert....
and Senior Policy Advisor to the U.S. Presidential Envoy to Iraq, L. Paul Bremer III. He was responsible for reconstituting the Iraqi Ministry of Interior which had dissolved into the community during the U.S. led coalition's invasion of Iraq. The Iraq Interior consisted of the National Police, Intelligence Service and Border and Customs Police. Prior to his departure on September 2, 2003, more than 35,000 Iraqi police were re-instated, 35 police stations were stood up in Baghdad with several more around the country, the senior deputy interior ministers were appointed and the newly established governing counsel appointed the first Iraqi Minister of Interior, post Saddam Hussein, Nouri Badran.
In a
United NationsThe United Nations is an international organization whose stated aims are facilitating cooperation in international law, international security, economic development, social progress, human rights, and achievement of world peace...
UNODC Fact Finding Mission Report dated May 18, 2003, Kerik was cited as leading a small "International Policing Team", to restructure and rebuild the Iraqi Police and Ministry of Interior. They noted that the team made "positive interventions in a number of areas", but were under "no illusions about the magnitude of the reforms and work required" moving forward. Because Iraq had suffered from years of authoritarian rule, conflict and isolation, failure to pursue the necessary reforms with speed and resources, could result in serious consequences for the development of democracy and economic prosperity in Iraq.
The National Commission on Terrorist Attacks Upon the United States
On May 18, 2004, Kerik testified before the 9/11 Commission in New York City. He concluded his testimony with a list of lessons learned or recommendations, making the following points:
• First, emergency operations centers, with an Office of Emergency Management responsible for its operations, similar to the one in New York City, are essential, not only to coordinate operations in the event of a crisis but also for planning purposes. Relationships and response plans must be well established, before an emergency occurs – you just can’t make them happen in the midst of a crisis.
• Second, success in securing our homeland requires accurate and real time intelligence that is shared with all necessary stakeholders, whether they are at the local, state or federal level. There must be internal monitoring systems that will insure efficiency and accountability with regard to information sharing and communications. A culture change in intelligence and information sharing is essential and those that refuse to change must be removed. There can be no compromise.
• Third, this culture change has begun, assisted through the provisions of the Patriot Act. This law contains many provisions, particularly with respect to information sharing, that better enable law enforcement to continues its fight against terrorism. Thus, the Act should be continued.
• We should create a mechanism to hold countries accountable that promote terrorism against the United States. Such countries constitute a legitimate threat against Americans, both here and abroad.
• Finally, I believe our battles have only just begun. Removing the Taliban and the Al-Qaeda leadership from Afghanistan --- and Saddam and his regime from Iraq, were just the beginning in addressing the real threats against us. We must stand firm, stay pre-emptive and never believe for one minute that this war is over. And to those who would say that our actions in Iraq or Afghanistan have only worsened the threats against us, or to the Spanish who believe their involvement in Iraq resulted in the train bombings in Madrid, I ask: Why us on September 11, 2001?
"They brought this war to us, and it is a war we cannot afford to lose. I ask the members of this Commission to put politics aside, put our freedom first and give us the ammunition we need to continue the battle before us. For without it…we lose".
Politics
Upon his return from
IraqIraq ; officially the Republic of Iraq is a country in Western Asia spanning most of the northwestern end of the Zagros mountain range, the eastern part of the Syrian Desert and the northern part of the Arabian Desert....
, Kerik was politically active, campaigning for Republican candidates for political offices at all levels, including speaking at the
2004 Republican National ConventionThe 2004 Republican National Convention, the presidential nominating convention of the Republican Party of the United States, took place from August 30 to September 2, 2004 at Madison Square Garden in New York City, New York...
, where he endorsed
George W. BushGeorge Walker Bush is an American politician who served as the 43rd President of the United States, from 2001 to 2009. Before that, he was the 46th Governor of Texas, having served from 1995 to 2000....
for re-election.
Kerik has been an outspoken supporter for the war in Iraq and Afghanistan, calling for aggressive sanctions against Iran and Syria for their support of state sponsored terror.
Consulting work
Following his departure from the New York City Police Department, he was employed by
Giuliani PartnersGiuliani Partners LLC is a management consulting and security consulting business founded by former New York City Mayor Rudolph Giuliani in January 2002.-Structure:...
, a consulting firm formed by the former Mayor of New York, Rudolph Giuliani. He served as a Senior Vice President at Giuliani Partners and as
Chief Executive OfficerA chief executive officer , managing director , Executive Director for non-profit organizations, or chief executive is the highest-ranking corporate officer or administrator in charge of total management of an organization...
of Giuliani-Kerik LLC, an affiliate of Giuliani Partners. Kerik resigned from these positions in December, 2004. In March 2005 he created The Kerik Group LLC, where he served as Chairman until June 2009, consulting in Crisis Management and Risk Mitigation, Counter-Terrorism and Law Enforcement and Jail/Prison Management strategies. He has served as an advisor and consultant to His Majesty King Abdullah II of the
Hashemite Kingdom of JordanJordan , officially the Hashemite Kingdom of Jordan , Al-Mamlaka al-Urduniyya al-Hashemiyya) is a kingdom on the East Bank of the River Jordan. The country borders Saudi Arabia to the east and south-east, Iraq to the north-east, Syria to the north and the West Bank and Israel to the west, sharing...
and to President Bharrat Jagdeo of the Republic of Guyana. He has overseen threat and vulnerability assessments for a ruling family in the
United Arab EmiratesThe United Arab Emirates, abbreviated as the UAE, or shortened to "the Emirates", is a state situated in the southeast of the Arabian Peninsula in Western Asia on the Persian Gulf, bordering Oman, and Saudi Arabia, and sharing sea borders with Iraq, Kuwait, Bahrain, Qatar, and Iran.The UAE is a...
and has also worked on crime reduction and national security strategies in Trinidad & Tobago and
Mexico CityMexico City is the Federal District , capital of Mexico and seat of the federal powers of the Mexican Union. It is a federal entity within Mexico which is not part of any one of the 31 Mexican states but belongs to the federation as a whole...
,
MexicoThe United Mexican States , commonly known as Mexico , is a federal constitutional republic in North America. It is bordered on the north by the United States; on the south and west by the Pacific Ocean; on the southeast by Guatemala, Belize, and the Caribbean Sea; and on the east by the Gulf of...
.
Nomination as U.S. Secretary of Homeland Security
On December 3, 2004, Kerik was nominated by President Bush to succeed
Tom RidgeThomas Joseph "Tom" Ridge is an American politician who served as a member of the United States House of Representatives , the 43rd Governor of Pennsylvania , Assistant to the President for Homeland Security , and the first United States Secretary of Homeland Security...
as
United States Secretary of Homeland SecurityThe United States Secretary of Homeland Security is the head of the United States Department of Homeland Security, the body concerned with protecting the American homeland and the safety of American citizens. The Secretary is a member of the President's Cabinet. The position was created by the...
.
Attorney GeneralIn most common law jurisdictions, the attorney general, or attorney-general, is the main legal advisor to the government, and in some jurisdictions he or she may also have executive responsibility for law enforcement or responsibility for public prosecutions.The term is used to refer to any person...
Alberto GonzalesAlberto R. Gonzales was the 80th Attorney General of the United States. Gonzales was appointed to the post in February 2005 by President George W. Bush. Gonzales was the first Hispanic Attorney General in U.S. history and the highest-ranking Hispanic government official ever...
vetted Kerik during that nomination period. But on December 10, after a week of press scrutiny, Kerik withdrew acceptance of the nomination. Kerik stated that he had unknowingly hired an undocumented worker as a nanny and housekeeper who had used someone else's social security number. Similar violations of
immigration lawImmigration law refers to national government policies which control the phenomenon of immigration to their country.Immigraton law, regarding foreign citizens, is related to nationality law, which governs the legal status of people, in matters such as citizenship...
had previously caused the withdrawal of the nominations of
Linda ChavezLinda Chavez is an American author, commentator, and radio talk show host. She is also a Fox News analyst, Chairman of the Center for Equal Opportunity, has a syndicated column that appears in newspapers nationwide each week, and sits on the Board of Directors of two Fortune 1000 companies:...
as
Secretary of LaborThe United States Secretary of Labor is the head of the Department of Labor who exercises control over the department and enforces and suggests laws involving unions, the workplace, and all other issues involving any form of business-person controversies....
by
George W. BushGeorge Walker Bush is an American politician who served as the 43rd President of the United States, from 2001 to 2009. Before that, he was the 46th Governor of Texas, having served from 1995 to 2000....
and of
Zoë BairdZoë Eliot Baird is an American lawyer who is president of the Markle Foundation. She is most known for her role in the Nannygate matter of 1993.-Biography:...
and
Kimba WoodKimba Maureen Wood is a United States federal judge for the United States District Court for the Southern District of New York.-Early life and education:...
as
Attorney GeneralThe United States Attorney General is the head of the United States Department of Justice concerned with legal affairs and is the chief law enforcement officer of the United States government. The attorney general is considered to be the chief lawyer of the U.S. government...
by
PresidentA president is a leader of an organization, company, trade union, university, or country.Etymologically, a president is one who presides, who sits in leadership...
Bill ClintonWilliam Jefferson "Bill" Clinton is an American politician who served as the 42nd President of the United States from 1993 to 2001. Inaugurated at age 46, he was the third-youngest president. He took office at the end of the Cold War, and was the first president of the baby boomer generation...
.
Shortly after withdrawal of the nomination, the press reported on several other incidents which might also have posed difficulties in gaining confirmation by the Senate. These include: questions regarding Kerik's sale of stock in
Taser InternationalTaser International, Inc. is a developer, manufacturer, and distributor of the Taser less-lethal electroshock guns in the United States. It is based at Scottsdale, Arizona, United States. Taser is the most common brand of electroshock gun.-History:...
shortly before the release of an
Amnesty InternationalAmnesty International is an international non-governmental organisation whose stated mission is "to conduct research and generate action to prevent and end grave abuses of human rights, and to demand justice for those whose rights have been violated."Following a publication of Peter Benenson's...
report critical of the company's stun-gun product; a
sexual harassmentSexual harassment, is intimidation, bullying or coercion of a sexual nature, or the unwelcome or inappropriate promise of rewards in exchange for sexual favors. In some contexts or circumstances, sexual harassment is illegal. It includes a range of behavior from seemingly mild transgressions and...
lawsuit; an alleged affair with
Judith ReganJudith Regan is an American editor, producer, book publisher and television and radio talk show host. She is the mother of a son and a daughter and lives in New York City and Los Angeles.-Early life:...
; allegations of misuse of police personnel and property for personal benefit; connections with a construction company suspected of having ties to
organized crimeOrganized crime or criminal organizations are transnational, national, or local groupings of highly centralized enterprises run by criminals for the purpose of engaging in illegal activity, most commonly for monetary profit. Some criminal organizations, such as terrorist organizations, are...
; and failure to comply with ethics rules on gifts.
Awards and honors
Considered one of the most decorated
Police CommissionerCommissioner is a senior rank used in many police forces and may be rendered Police Commissioner or Commissioner of Police. In some organizations, the commissioner is a political appointee, and may or may not actually be a professional police officer. In these circumstances, there is often a...
s in the history of the
New York City Police DepartmentThe New York City Police Department , established in 1845, is currently the largest municipal police force in the United States, with primary responsibilities in law enforcement and investigation within the five boroughs of New York City...
, he earned 30 medals for excellent, meritorious and heroic service, including the
New York City Police Department Medal for ValorThe New York City Police Department's Medal for Valor is the department's third highest medal. It is conferred upon police officers for acts of outstanding personal bravery intelligently performed in the line of duty at imminent personal hazard to life under circumstances evincing a disregard of...
for his involvement in a gun battle in which his partner was shot and wounded and he and his team members returned fire, downing the suspect. Other medals included 1 Honorable Mention, 5 Commendations, 10 Meritorious Police Duty and 13 Excellent Police Duty medals.
Kerik received a U. S. Presidential Letter of Commendation from President
Ronald ReaganRonald Wilson Reagan was the 40th President of the United States , the 33rd Governor of California and, prior to that, a radio, film and television actor....
for heroism and was appointed Honorary Commander of the Most Excellent Order of the British Empire (CBE) by
Queen Elizabeth IIElizabeth II is the constitutional monarch of 16 sovereign states known as the Commonwealth realms: the United Kingdom, Canada, Australia, New Zealand, Jamaica, Barbados, the Bahamas, Grenada, Papua New Guinea, the Solomon Islands, Tuvalu, Saint Lucia, Saint Vincent and the Grenadines, Belize,...
. He was also appointed Knight Commander, of the Military Constantinian Order of St. George by the Duke of Calabria, Italy. He received the
Ellis IslandEllis Island in New York Harbor was the gateway for millions of immigrants to the United States. It was the nation's busiest immigrant inspection station from 1892 until 1954. The island was greatly expanded with landfill between 1892 and 1934. Before that, the much smaller original island was the...
Medal of Honor, the Mayor’s Medal of Honor from the City of
Paterson, New JerseyPaterson is a city serving as the county seat of Passaic County, New Jersey, United States. As of the 2010 United States Census, its population was 146,199, rendering it New Jersey's third largest city and one of the largest cities in the New York City Metropolitan Area, despite a decrease of 3,023...
, and a Mayor’s Meritorious Commendation from the City of
Passaic, New JerseyPassaic is a city in Passaic County, New Jersey, United States. As of the 2010 United States Census, the city had a total population of 69,781, maintaining its status as the 15th largest municipality in New Jersey with an increase of 1,920 residents from the 2000 Census population of 67,861...
, all for heroism. He earned the Medal of Merit from the New Jersey State Police Benevolent Association and the Medal for Valor from the International Narcotics Enforcement Officers Association.
Other honors have included: The
New York State SenateThe New York State Senate is one of two houses in the New York State Legislature and has members each elected to two-year terms. There are no limits on the number of terms one may serve...
Liberty Award, the Golden Star Leadership Award,
Los AngelesLos Ángeles is the capital of the province of Biobío, in the commune of the same name, in Region VIII , in the center-south of Chile. It is located between the Laja and Biobío rivers. The population is 123,445 inhabitants...
,
CaliforniaCalifornia is a state located on the West Coast of the United States. It is by far the most populous U.S. state, and the third-largest by land area...
; Special Achievement Award, Special Narcotics Prosecutor's Office, City of New York; Man of the Year Award, Honor Legion, Police Department – City of New York; Man of the Year Award, Detective’s Endowment Association, Police Department – City of New York; Man of the Year Award,
Brooklyn Law SchoolBrooklyn Law School is a law school located in Brooklyn Heights, in Downtown Brooklyn, New York.-History:Founded in 1901 by William Payson Richardson and Norman P. Heffley, Brooklyn Law School was the first law school on Long Island. Using space provided by Heffley’s business school, the law...
, LELSA; 2 Distinguished Service Awards, U.S. Department of Homeland Security; DEA Administrator's Award, U.S. Department of Justice,
DEAThe Drug Enforcement Administration is a federal law enforcement agency under the United States Department of Justice, tasked with combating drug smuggling and use within the United States...
; Distinguished Person of the Year, NYC Correction Captains Association; Distinguished Service Award, New York Shields; Distinguished Service Award, New York City Retired Detective's Association; Dedication and Commitment Award, NYC Correction Officer’s Association and the President’s Appreciation Award, NYC Correction Guardians Association.
He is an active member of the Detective’s Endowment Association – City of New York and the New Jersey State PBA (Silver Card – Life Member). He is a member of the Honor Legion of both, the City of New York and State of New Jersey; and past member of the National Council of Columbia Societies in Civil Service; the Narcotics Enforcement Officers Association of New York and the International Narcotic Enforcement Officers Association. He served as the former Vice Chairman of the Boy Scouts’ Greater New York Council Law Enforcement Exploring Division and the Michael John Buczek Foundation Award's Committee.
He has received Honorary Doctorates from
Michigan State UniversityMichigan State University is a public research university in East Lansing, Michigan, USA. Founded in 1855, it was the pioneer land-grant institution and served as a model for future land-grant colleges in the United States under the 1862 Morrill Act.MSU pioneered the studies of packaging,...
,
New York Institute of TechnologyNew York Institute of Technology is a private, non-sectarian, co-educational research university in New York City. NYIT has five schools and two colleges, all with a strong emphasis on technology and applied scientific research...
,
Manhattanville CollegeManhattanville College is a private, coeducational liberal arts college offering undergraduate and graduate degrees, located in Purchase, New York. Founded in 1841 it was known initially as Manhattanville College of the Sacred Heart...
, College of New Rochelle and
Iona CollegeIona College is located in New Rochelle, New York, 20 miles north of Manhattan in suburban Westchester County. The college occupies 35 acres on North Ave. The college also operates a Graduate Center in Pearl River, Rockland County, New York....
, and he received the President's Medal from
Hunter CollegeHunter College, established in 1870, is a public university and one of the constituent colleges of the City University of New York, located on Manhattan's Upper East Side. Hunter grants undergraduate, graduate, and post-graduate degrees in more than one hundred fields of study, and is recognized...
.
He is a 5th Degree Master Instructor in the Martial Arts, studying both Korean and Japanese Karate, and has been inducted into The Centurion Black Belt Hall of Fame.
Personal life
Kerik's first child, Yi Sa, was born in October 1975 to Yi Yun Cha when he was 19 and serving in South Korea as a military policeman. In February 1976, Kerik completed his tour of duty in South Korea and was transferred back to the United States, leaving both mother and daughter behind. In his autobiography, Kerik called the episode "a mistake I will always regret, and I pray to God that one day I can make it right". In December, 2001, Kerik and his daughter, now Lisa Marie Jordan (married to Joshua Jordan with two children), re-united after 26 years of separation.
Kerik has been married three times. His first marriage was to Linda Hales on August 10, 1978, when he was nearly 24 and she was 27. They separated in 1982 and were officially divorced June 6, 1983. Linda — now remarried and known as Linda H Priest — is the Clerk of Superior Court in
Fayetteville, North CarolinaFayetteville is a city located in Cumberland County, North Carolina, United States. It is the county seat of Cumberland County, and is best known as the home of Fort Bragg, a U.S. Army post located northwest of the city....
.
Kerik's second marriage was to Jacqueline Llerena of New Jersey. It lasted from September 3, 1983, to July 1992. Together they had one son, Joseph Michael (born June 11, 1985) who is a Detective with the Newark Police Department in New Jersey.
Kerik's third marriage was to
SyriaSyria , officially the Syrian Arab Republic , is a country in Western Asia, bordering Lebanon and the Mediterranean Sea to the West, Turkey to the north, Iraq to the east, Jordan to the south, and Israel to the southwest....
-born Hala Matli (born February 3, 1972). He met her in 1996, when she was the office manager in his dentist's office. They married on November 1, 1998, and they have two daughters: Celine Christina (born March 3, 2000) and Angelina Amber (born October 30, 2002). Rudy Giuliani is their godfather.
He is a 5th degree
black beltIn martial arts, the black belt is a way to describe a graduate of a field where a practitioner's level is often marked by the color of the belt. The black belt is commonly the highest belt color used and denotes a degree of competence. It is often associated with a teaching grade though...
master instructor in the
martial artsMartial arts are extensive systems of codified practices and traditions of combat, practiced for a variety of reasons, including self-defense, competition, physical health and fitness, as well as mental and spiritual development....
, with black belts in both
JapanJapan is an island nation in East Asia. Located in the Pacific Ocean, it lies to the east of the Sea of Japan, China, North Korea, South Korea and Russia, stretching from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north to the East China Sea and Taiwan in the south...
ese
Karateis a martial art developed in the Ryukyu Islands in what is now Okinawa, Japan. It was developed from indigenous fighting methods called and Chinese kenpō. Karate is a striking art using punching, kicking, knee and elbow strikes, and open-handed techniques such as knife-hands. Grappling, locks,...
and
KoreaKorea ) is an East Asian geographic region that is currently divided into two separate sovereign states — North Korea and South Korea. Located on the Korean Peninsula, Korea is bordered by the People's Republic of China to the northwest, Russia to the northeast, and is separated from Japan to the...
n Tae Kwon Do.
In 2001, Kerik published a memoir,
The Lost Son: A Life in Pursuit of Justice, a
New York Times best seller. In this book, he revealed that his parents divorced when he was three years old, and that his mother, an alcoholic and a prostitute, was murdered when he was nine – possibly by her pimp.
Kerik's father, Donald Raymond Kerik, Sr. died on February 24, 2006 from cancer.
In 2009 Kerik was seen in the season finale of the Bravo reality show
Real Housewives of New Jersey.
Kerik has been a resident of
Franklin Lakes, New JerseyFranklin Lakes is a borough in Bergen County, New Jersey, United States. As of the 2010 census, the borough population was 10,590. As of the 2000 Census, Franklin Lakes had the 18th-highest per-capita income of all 566 municipalities in the state. Nationwide, Franklin Lakes ranked 17th among the...
.
Investigation, federal indictment and imprisonment
On June 30, 2006, after an eighteen-month investigation conducted by the Bronx District Attorney's Office, Kerik admitted his guilt via a sworn statement in open court to two ethics violations (unclassified misdemeanors) and was ordered to pay $221,000 in fines at the 10-minute hearing. Kerik acknowledged that he failed to document a personal loan on his annual New York City Conflict of Interest Report (a violation of the New York City Administrative Code) and accepting a gift from a
New JerseyNew Jersey is a state in the Northeastern and Middle Atlantic regions of the United States. , its population was 8,791,894. It is bordered on the north and east by the state of New York, on the southeast and south by the Atlantic Ocean, on the west by Pennsylvania and on the southwest by Delaware...
construction firm attempting to do business with the city (a violation of the New York City Charter). During the court hearing, the Assistant Bronx District Attorney stated that "although some may draw inferences from this plea, there is no direct evidence of an agreement between Kerik and the New Jersey construction firm."
On November 8, 2007, in
White Plains, New YorkWhite Plains is a city and the county seat of Westchester County, New York, United States. It is located in south-central Westchester, about east of the Hudson River and northwest of Long Island Sound...
, Kerik was
indictedAn indictment , in the common-law legal system, is a formal accusation that a person has committed a crime. In jurisdictions that maintain the concept of felonies, the serious criminal offence is a felony; jurisdictions that lack the concept of felonies often use that of an indictable offence—an...
by a federal
grand juryA grand jury is a type of jury that determines whether a criminal indictment will issue. Currently, only the United States retains grand juries, although some other common law jurisdictions formerly employed them, and most other jurisdictions employ some other type of preliminary hearing...
on charges of conspiracy, tax fraud and making false statements. Prosecutors say Kerik received about $255,000 in renovations to his
Riverdale, BronxRiverdale is an affluent residential neighborhood in the northwest portion of the Bronx in New York City. Riverdale contains the northernmost point in New York City.-History:...
, apartment from a company seeking to do business with the city of New York and concealed the income from the Internal Revenue Service. The indictment also charged that Kerik made several false statements to the White House (in his background information statement regarding his Department of Homeland Security appointment) and other federal officials. If convicted on all 16 counts in the indictment, Kerik could have faced a maximum sentence of 142 years in prison and $4.7 million in fines. He was released upon payment of a $500,000 bond. The New York charges were dropped in December 2008, but he was indicted in a separate Washington, DC action because that is where the crimes happened. "Today’s indictment of Mr. Kerik—the third separate prosecution against him arising out of the same purported corruption allegations from 10 years ago—is the latest example of the Department of Justice’s overzealous pursuit of high-profile public figures,” said Barry Berke, Kerik's attorney.
On October 20, 2009, Kerik's bail was revoked after he allegedly disclosed information which was under seal.
He was remanded to the Westchester County Department of Corrections jail in
Valhalla, New YorkValhalla is an unincorporated hamlet and census-designated place that is located within the town of Mount Pleasant, New York, in Westchester County. Its population was 3,162 at the 2010 U.S. Census...
, which has a section reserved for federal prisoners. Kerik was referred to as "a toxic combination of self-minded focus and arrogance" by Judge
Stephen RobinsonStephen Craig Robinson was a United States federal judge who served on the United States District Court for the Southern District of New York from 2003 to 2010.-Early life and education:...
on October 20, 2009.
On November 5, 2009, Kerik pled guilty to tax fraud and lying to White House officials. The prosecution and defense recommended that Judge Robinson sentence Mr. Kerik, who faced up to 30 years in prison on the most serious charge, to 27–33 months. The judge, who was not bound by the recommendation, set sentencing for February 18. On that date, Kerik was sentenced to 48 months in prison; he was also ordered to pay restitution of nearly $188,000.
Kerik is currently serving his sentence at a minimum security prison camp located at the
Federal Correctional Institution, CumberlandFederal Correctional Institution, Cumberland in Cumberland, Maryland is a federal prison that houses medium security male offenders. The FCI has an adjacent minimum security satellite camp that houses male offenders....
in
MarylandMaryland is a U.S. state located in the Mid Atlantic region of the United States, bordering Virginia, West Virginia, and the District of Columbia to its south and west; Pennsylvania to its north; and Delaware to its east...
and is scheduled for release on October 15, 2013. While in prison, he was reported to have
tweetedTwitter is an online social networking and microblogging service that enables its users to send and read text-based posts of up to 140 characters, informally known as "tweets".Twitter was created in March 2006 by Jack Dorsey and launched that July...
his negative opinion of the proposed Park51 project, though as a prisoner he was forbidden access to the
InternetThe Internet is a global system of interconnected computer networks that use the standard Internet protocol suite to serve billions of users worldwide...
, a prison spokesperson said.
External links
- This article was originally based on information from New York City's official website.http://www.ci.nyc.ny.us/html/om/html/2000b/pr332-00
- Newsday article, May 23, 2003 announcing Kerik's appointment to post in Iraq http://www.nynewsday.com/news/local/manhattan/nyc-nykeri163287559may16,0,7051520.story?coll=nyc-manheadlines-manhattan
- Plea Baragain, Sentencing Memos (U.S. v. Kerik) FindLaw
FindLaw is a business of Thomson Reuters that provides online legal information and online marketing services for law firms. FindLaw was created by Stacy Stern, Martin Roscheisen and Tim Stanley in 1995, and was acquired by Thomson West in 2001....
- Tom Brokaw MSNBC Interview July 14, 2003 http://www.msnbc.com/news/938727.asp?0bl=-0
- Only In America – biographical article by Arnaud de Borchgrave
Arnaud de Borchgrave is an American journalist who specializes in international politics.Born in Belgium to Audrey Dorothy Louise Townshend, daughter of Major General Sir Charles Vere Ferrers Townshend, and Belgian count Baudouin de Borchgrave d’Altena , head of Belgium's military intelligence...
in The Washington TimesThe Washington Times is a daily broadsheet newspaper published in Washington, D.C., the capital of the United States. It was founded in 1982 by Unification Church founder Sun Myung Moon, and until 2010 was owned by News World Communications, an international media conglomerate associated with the...
, December 5, 2004.
- Kerik's Surveillance Activity in Saudi Arabia Is Disputed, John Mintz and Lucy Shackelford, Washington Post, December 10, 2004.
- Homeland Security Nominee Withdraws
- Why Did Bernard Kerik Really Bow Out? Newsweek, December 11, 2004.
- Bernard Kerik problems
- Kerik hired as Security Advisor to Guyana Government
- Why the Jails Didn't Explode "City Journal", Spring 1999.
- Bernie Kerik Won't Fold Best Life Magazine.