Nonfeasance by a public official
A decision by New York State’s highest court sustained the conviction of a police officer who had taken part in a plot to prevent the arrest of a teenager accused of burglary and whose father had personal connections to the officer's Police Department.
The Court of Appeals said that it is not “discretionary” for government officials to abdicate their responsibility to pursue wrongdoing if that decision is being made to benefit someone personally.
The court explained that “... a public servant’s knowing refusal to perform a mandatory action coupled with an intent to obtain a benefit constitutes nonfeasance,” in upholding the police official’s conviction. In the words of the court, “... when a public servant, with the intent to obtain a benefit, knowingly refuses to perform a discretionary duty, the performance of which is so obviously fundamental to accomplishing the goals of the public servant’s office, that refusal cannot legitimately be understood to be an exercise of discretion; rather, it constitutes an abuse of discretion, which equates to nonfeasance.”
Other such transgressions include misfeasance in office, acting unlawfully, and malfeasance in office, performing official acts badly.
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New York Public Personnel Law Blog Editor Harvey Randall served as Principal Attorney, New York State Department of Civil Service; Director of Personnel, SUNY Central Administration; Director of Research, Governor’s Office of Employee Relations; and Staff Judge Advocate General, New York Guard.
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