In Bridgegate whitewash, 'shut up' was just the beginning: Editorial

[unhappycamper]

http://www.nj.com/opinion/index.ssf/2014/09/port_authority_cops_just_the_beginning_of_the_bridgegate_coverup_editorial.html#incart_river_politics



Port Authority Police officers patrolling the George Washington Bridge during the September 2013 lane closures were reportedly told to keep their concerns about traffic to themselves.

In Bridgegate whitewash, 'shut up' was just the beginning: Editorial
By Star-Ledger Editorial Board
on September 04, 2014 at 7:03 PM, updated September 04, 2014 at 9:16 PM

Port Authority cops working the George Washington Bridge during the infamous Fort Lee lane closures said they sounded early alarms about “horrific” traffic. At least one officer radioed his superiors to warn that it was endangering the public, we learned from a memo released yesterday. The answer he got was succinct: ‘Shut up.’

That cop was later visited at his post and told his comments over the air were inappropriate. There was no legitimate reason to shut him up, other than something nefarious at work. So count that as stage one of the Bridgegate whitewash.

The final stage? A more than $9 million bill for the Mastro report. That’s as of earlier this week — and the meter is still running, at a minimum of $350 an hour.

The story told by the chastised Port Authority officer and others involved in the rush-hour traffic nightmare jibes with testimony legislators already heard from Port Authority officials. Under oath, they said they knew about the lane closings but kept quiet out of fear. It also raises other intriguing questions: Who ordered the superior officers to keep quiet, and did they obey out of loyalty to the governor?