Finnigan Pleads Guilty in Murder-for-Hire Scheme

By Chuck Sudo in News on Apr 27, 2011 2:30PM

Jerome Finnigan, the former cop who was at the center of the disgraceful actions of the now-disbanded Special Operations Section, pleaded guilty to plotting a murder-for-hire of a fellow police officer yesterday. Thanks to a plea deal made public yesterday on that count and a tax charge, Finnigan will serve no more than 13 years in prison.

Finnigan, whose actions while locked up at the Downtown Correction Center have been anything but penitent, described the murder-for-hire plot as a "charade."

"It was not my intent to kill anybody, but I put myself in a bad situation," Finnigan said in his first public comments since the scandal broke five years ago. "I don't think I would have done it if I was thinking clearly. It was totally out of character for me."

Actually, given his history in the SOS and at the DCC, it seems very in character. Finnigan admitted to taking part in five robberies that netted $600,000 between 2004 and 2005 from alleged drug dealers and others during illegal traffic stops by SOS members. Finnigan's take in the robberies was over $200,000. As another part of the plea deal, prosecutors agreed to drop civil rights charges against Finnigan related to the robberies.