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Blue on Blue: An Insider's Story of Good Cops Catching Bad Cops Kindle Edition

by Charles Campisi (Author) Format: Kindle Edition
4.4 4.4 out of 5 stars 386 ratings
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In one of the most illuminating portraits of police work ever, Chief Charles Campisi describes the inner workings of the world’s largest police force and his unprecedented career putting bad cops behind bars. “Compelling, educational, memorable…this superb memoir can be read for its sheer entertainment or as a primer on police work—or both” (Kirkus Reviews, starred review).

From 1996 to 2014 Charles Campisi headed NYPD’s Internal Affairs Bureau, working under four police commissioners and gaining a reputation as hard-nosed and incorruptible. During Campisi’s IAB tenure, the number of New Yorkers shot, wounded, or killed by cops every year declined by ninety percent, and the number of cops failing integrity tests shrank to an equally startling low. But to achieve those exemplary results, Campisi had to triple IAB’s staff, hire the very best detectives, and put the word out that corruption wouldn’t be tolerated.

Blue on Blue provides “a rare glimpse inside one of the most secretive branches of policing…and a compelling, behind-the-scenes account of what it takes to investigate police officers who cross the line between guardians of the public to criminals. It’s a mesmerizing exposé on the harsh realities and complexities of being a cop on the mean streets of New York City and the challenges of enforcing the law while at the same time obeying it” (The New York Journal of Books). Campisi allows us to listen in on wiretaps and feel the adrenaline rush of drawing in the net. It also reveals new threats to the force, such as the possibility of infiltration by terrorists.

“A lively memoir [told with] verve, intriguing detail, and a generous heart” (The Wall Street Journal) and “an expose of the NYPD’s Internal Affairs Bureaus [that is] enlightening and entertaining” (The New York Times Book Review), Blue on Blue will forever change the way you view police work.
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  1. Print length
    369 pages
  2. Language
    English
  3. Sticky notes
    On Kindle Scribe
  4. Publisher
    Scribner
  5. Publication date
    February 7, 2017
  6. File size
    5193 KB
  7. Page Flip
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Editorial Reviews

Review

“A lively memoir…Mr. Campisi, a Brooklyn kid who had one of the longest careers in the NYPD’s history, has seen it all, and he tells his cop stories with verve, intriguing detail and a generous heart.”
—Wall Street Journal

"An expose of the secretive work of the NYPD's Internal Affairs Bureau . . . enlightening and entertaining."
—New York Times Book Review

“A compelling, educational, memorable account of Campisi’s rise through the police department ranks until he was ordered to accept an assignment no cop ever wanted: to become part of the Internal Affairs Bureau…Campisi found ways to alter the reputation of the bureau while also improving techniques to catch and punish cops who cut corners, stole drugs, or employed excessive force…This superb memoir can be read for its sheer entertainment or as a primer on police work—or both.”
—Kirkus Reviews (starred review)

"The thing about Chief Charles Campisi is that he's a truth teller. Blue on Blue takes the reader into a shadow world where police officers confront evil and often lose that confrontation. This is a serious look at American police work from a man who has seen it all. You will learn an enormous amount by reading this book."
—Bill O'Reilly, Anchor at FOX News Channel

"A compelling, fascinating, and often harrowing read. In taut prose, Charles Campisi describes the evolution, formation, and institutionalization of a truly professional Internal Affairs Bureau, which he commanded from the mid-1990s until his recent retirement, and which stands as the most important and beneficial development in the modern history of the NYPD—indeed, it is arguably the single greatest achievement in the history of American police work generally. This is a riveting history, wonderful for general readers and essential for all modern police forces to study and absorb."
—Caleb Carr, New York Times bestselling author of The Alienist and Surrender, New York

“Blue on Blue is a refreshing, behind-the-wall-of-silence look at what goes on—and why—in big city police departments. Campisi stockpiles his story arsenal with riveting history, experience, anecdotal evidence and high emotion, continually reminding us of the beacon he kept in sight throughout his career, which was to stay on the up and up no matter what. It all adds up to the real deal from a solid confidential informant.”
—Theresa Schwegel, Edgar Award winning author of Officer Down

“A must-read for those who want to know the real story behind police misconduct, written with unvarnished frankness by the man who knows the most about the problem. Told with the same gripping intensity as the best true crime, Blue on Blue takes the reader inside the most highly publicized investigations as they happened.”
—Thomas Reppetto, author of the two-volume American Police: 1845-2012

“Reading Blue on Blue is like losing yourself in a good detective novel, except for two things. It’s fact, not fiction. And the bad guys are cops, being chased by good guys who are cops. No one has more insight into the hard work of ensuring integrity in policing than Charles Campisi, the NYPD’s longest serving head of internal affairs. This book should inspire others to follow his example.”
—Jeremy Travis, President of John Jay College of Criminal Justice and Former Director of the National Institute of Justice

“Blue on Blue is as important as it is timely. This is police work as it happens every day, told by a determined and dedicated cop, Charlie Campisi, who never wavered from his mission: to try to make sure all cops act with 100% integrity. Campisi writes compellingly of his nearly twenty years as the chief of IAB, monitoring his fellow cops in what was often a thankless job. It was a job that often included lonely stakeouts, highly dangerous situations and savvy detective work, worthy of Sherlock Holmes. The NYPD lost the best internal investigator in the country when Campisi left the department."
—Ray Kelly, Longest serving Commissioner of the NYPD

“In the world of policing there is no more secretive activity then Internal Affairs. In Blue on Blue, Chief Charlie Campisi lifts the veil, showing the reader the twisted rationalizations, clever deceptions, and sometimes dangerous calculations of cops who are criminals. As the longest serving chief of the NYPD bureau entrusted with the job of rooting out cops who betray their oath, Campisi proved perfect for the job. Though he always treated the accused as innocent until facts suggested otherwise, when evidence showed wrongdoing, he was both skillful and relentless in bringing the offender to justice. I appointed Chief Campisi for those very reasons, and consider him the best ever Chief of IAB in the best police department in the world.”
—Howard Safir, 39th Commissioner of the NYPD

“As a former police chief, I can vouch not only for the impressiveness of the detective work on display in Blue on Blue, but also for the unyieldingly truthful picture the book paints of how real cops do their jobs every day. Anyone who isn’t a cop will find this book eye-opening, and everyone will find it riveting.”
—Gil Kerlikowske, former Police Chief of Seattle, Washington

About the Author

Charles Campisi was Chief of the NYPD’s Internal Affairs Bureau from 1996 to 2014. In his years on the job he developed model strategies for investigating corruption, which have been adopted by law enforcement agencies across the US and abroad. A graduate of the FBI National Academy and Harvard’s John F. Kennedy School of Government, he currently works as a Senior VP at the private investigation firm Cyber Diligence. He grew up in Brooklyn, New York.

Gordon Dillow has been a reporter, columnist, and war correspondent for more than thirty years. He has written for a number of newspapers, including The Wall Street Journal and Los Angeles Times, and is the author or coauthor of numerous books. He lives in Scottsdale, Arizona.

Product details

  • ASIN ‏ : ‎ B01HMXRZ3C
  • Publisher ‏ : ‎ Scribner; Reprint edition (February 7, 2017)
  • Publication date ‏ : ‎ February 7, 2017
  • Language ‏ : ‎ English
  • File size ‏ : ‎ 5193 KB
  • Text-to-Speech ‏ : ‎ Enabled
  • Screen Reader ‏ : ‎ Supported
  • Enhanced typesetting ‏ : ‎ Enabled
  • X-Ray ‏ : ‎ Enabled
  • Word Wise ‏ : ‎ Enabled
  • Sticky notes ‏ : ‎ On Kindle Scribe
  • Print length ‏ : ‎ 369 pages
  • Customer Reviews:
    4.4 4.4 out of 5 stars 386 ratings

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Charles Campisi

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Customer reviews

4.4 out of 5 stars
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Top reviews from the United States

Kiwiwriter
5.0 out of 5 stars A great book: a very strong defense of both the NYPD and its Internal Affairs Bureau.
Reviewed in the United States on September 19, 2021
Verified Purchase
I'm a fourth-generation native New Yorker and was a cop reporter in New Jersey, so I have been aware of the need for and work of Internal Affairs Divisions on both sides of the mighty Hudson. I knew about the "Dirty 7-7," the Amadou Diallo shooting, and the Abner Louima horror show, and some of the high-profile cases.

What I didn't know is how they were investigated, and how the IAB had to clean up its own operation to become as effective as it is.

Charles Campisi and his co-author do an extremely clear and effective job of explaining how IAB works, down to taking the reader through major investigations (Abner Louima and Amadou Diallo), mid-level ones (people who impersonate cops to commit crimes), to workaday "stings" on police officers who are "flaking" suspects or "taking" proceeds from a drug arrest. The sting described in exquisite detail is quite amusing at some levels...the crass stupidity of the suspect who goes down, totally trapped.

These incidents are leveled by the hard work manifested by Campisi and many other cops in the course of the book. He himself turned IAB from being a "rat squad" through the simple expedient of conscripting cops (sometimes fresh out of the Academy) into the Bureau. Thus these guys could not be blamed for being "rats," they got drafted. We learn how IAB cops take acting classes for various roles in stings, which often expand. For example, in an effort to bring down crooked cops profiting from stolen cars, the IAB guys find they have to deal with organized crime that wants payoffs for protection. No problem: Campisi brings in some additional cops, including one who sounds like a "Sopranos" cast member, and the investigation teams up with Organized Crime Control Bureau to haul off the mobsters. The only problem is that when they shut down the fake chop shop...the fake owners have lost real money.

We also see how ordinary cops don't stand for abusive and corrupt behavior. One of the most important witnesses to the Abner Louima horror show wrestles with his conscience and discusses his dilemma with his family. Then he does the right thing -- tells IAB what he knows. His reward is promotion to Detective and assignment to IAB.

This is not the usual police book...there are a lot of dirty cops in it, but they are leavened with a lot of hard-working dedicated cops. I liked how Campisi wrote that the good news in 2016 was that there were only six police shootings in New York. The bad news was that there were six police shootings in New York.

I saw his point. So will the reader.
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ShaunSanders
4.0 out of 5 stars A Good Read
Reviewed in the United States on April 26, 2024
Verified Purchase
This is a good read, with a lot of good police stories within the context of the larger theme, which is that of what it takes to police the police. The stories read like episodes of the various ways a surprising number of bad apples tried to outpace the law, which apparently used to happen quite often before the author, Campisi, took the reins of NYPD Internal Affairs. Regarding the overall theme of cops policing cops, the book may hold interest for anyone studying the psychology behind why cops would fall into such self-destructive behaviors; there's got to be a larger discussion there. Not that Campisi skims over such issues entirely; in fact, he seems to understand why much of it happens. He even seems to empathize with various miscreants, whether in or out of uniform, but he maintains that a line must be drawn in the sand that should never be crossed; I admire him for that, especially considering the average cop's attitude toward being policed. Shades of Serpico.

Beyond that, the book is a collection of fairly intriguing tales about the ways Campisi's IA dept cleaned up the force. Campisi himself comes off as a good story-teller, and also as someone who is reasonably modest about his accomplishments. He makes the exceptionally good point - sort of by example - that police forces everywhere probably need to have fairly close oversight. Perhaps it goes back to the old saying that power corrupts and absolute power corrupts absolutely. But not always, thankfully. I'm grateful for honest cops. I can't imagine the nightmare life must become for anyone being exploited by someone in uniform.

Recommended reading.
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Chuck Klein
5.0 out of 5 stars Not about bad cops, but catching bad cops.
Reviewed in the United States on May 5, 2017
Verified Purchase
Though Blue on Blue is exclusively about NYPD corrupt policing, it reflects what other agencies surely should hope to emulate in fostering integrity in their departments. If you're a LEO or former LEO, then this is a page turner. For those who are not cops, it is an interesting reality check on what your taxes provide. This is very well written by an insider who came up from the ranks. Though I'm a former cop from a small community, I found Blue on Blue to most interesting, accurate and truthful about cops per se.
2 people found this helpful
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Ruth
5.0 out of 5 stars Treat yourself to a great read!
Reviewed in the United States on February 15, 2017
Verified Purchase
Chief Campisi has written an exceptional book about police life. He believes that 99 percent of the NYPD are loyal, dedicated, heroic men and women who care deeply about serving the public. Someone has to investigate and root out the 1% of folks in the NYPD who can't follow the rules or lack the integrity and skills necessary. The IAB serves a critical function - one that protects the men and women of the police force who are trying to serve the city - and it takes a special kind of man to take the heat. Campisi served New York well and he has shared his expertise and insight in this fascinating, must-read book. The information in this book can't be found anywhere else. Treat yourself to a great read,
One person found this helpful
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Top reviews from other countries

Sadie
5.0 out of 5 stars Must read!
Reviewed in Canada on November 4, 2017
Verified Purchase
Had me hooked from the first page. Would recommend to anyone interested in policing, politics, true crime etc. Offers a unique perspective.
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Paul Britton
4.0 out of 5 stars Charles Campisi gives a detailed account of his time as ...
Reviewed in Canada on April 10, 2018
Verified Purchase
Charles Campisi gives a detailed account of his time as a police officer with the NYPD. As he rises through the ranks he gives his point of view on crime, police culture and New York City. If you want a behind the scenes view into a secret world of policing this book is for you.
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