APD: Scumbags!

The Albany New York Police Department.  It’s supposedly about respect, according to their squad cars, but they’re anything but respectful.  In fact, one might say that each and every officer and detective is dirty, at least according to me, based on confrontations from back in 2017.  As they say, never forget!

Alleged physical and sexual abuse.  Alleged dirty warrants that were reportedly based on lies to a judge.  Apparent abuse of information that was then fed to the APD by an alleged dirty detective.  And these are just a few of the bad things that I allege that have happened to me at the hands of the APD.

It all started in early 2017 when the police were at my house on a mental crisis call.  I have schizoaffective disorder, and earlier in the day, I’d sent an email to the local ABC affiliate saying that I wanted to die by cop suicide.  I was not in my right mind at the time that I sent the message.  But by the time the officers arrived, many, many hours later, I was just fine, but the officers couldn’t leave well enough alone.

As proof of how slow Albany can be at times, there were no less than seven police officers there for something as petty that.  The police were talking to my wife in our apartment and I was outside in the hall.

I went to lean against my wall, next to a police officer.  I wasn’t close enough to touch him.  I wasn’t close enough to threaten his safety or that of his fellow scumbags. I wasn’t close enough to invade his personal space.

With all of his might, this officer, who would later be fired for driving drunk not once, but twice,  shoved me away from him and I hit my wall sideways.  I was taken to the mental health crisis center even though I was okay. I was obviously extremely angry after the officer assaulted me.

So, once I was released, I did what I could to even the score.  I waited a few days and I requested the police report so I could get the officer’s name.  I did get that report and I wrote a very angry blog post about him.  It was so intense that the district attorney’s office would eventually get involved.

I went full nuclear.  I was the United States and the officer was Russia, the former Soviet Union.  I found his home address and phone number, both of which I posted, for all to see.  I also posted his date of birth and a picture of his personal vehicle.

And then I did something that I do regret.  I found his Facebook page and saw a picture of him with his six-year-old daughter.  I posted that photograph on my blog and went nuts.  I encouraged readers to do awful, awful things to her in order to get back at him.

That, and that alone, I regret.  I had no right even discussing his daughter.  I got very graphic and eventually, the district attorney’s office got involved.

Then, the best thing happened.  I read a newspaper article about an APD officer getting arrested for drunk driving.  I laughed and I said to myself, it’s probably the same guy, the guy who shoved me with no justification.  As it turned out, it was him.  I gleefully ran to my computer and turned up the heat even more.

A few days after that, I was arrested on charges of stalking in the third degree.  The detectives hauled me in front of the judge after questioning me.  As I was waiting my turn, I saw one of “my” detectives putting a copy of my article in a yellow envelope.  I was then arraigned and bail was set at $2,000, meaning I’d have to come up with $200.

My wife went to work on that immediately, but I was taken to the county jail and wound up staying there overnight until bail finally posted the next morning.

When I got there, it was clear that the detectives knew who I was.  One of them looked at me and yelled, “Oh, look!  It’s the blogger!”  I was almost shoved into a small locker room, where I was made to change out of my street clothes and into an orange jail outfit.

After that, everyone else was being processed, but I was put in a cell by myself.  After everyone left, I could hear the officers reading the article.  Then, without warning, a deputy who was about six feet tall and very heavy opened my cell door.  At that time, I had a seizure disorder for which I was not medicated and was having a stress-induced seizure.

He knew I was having a seizure, yet still grabbed my shirt, lifted me up, slammed my face into the wall and then punched me in the nose.  He threw me back on the ground, picked me up again, and, as I recall, grabbed my groin and said, “fuck’s wrong with you?”

He then brought me out and I was brought into a small room where I sat down and was processed in.  Another deputy handled that and checked and found out that I had no warrants.  Well, duh.  I was then forcibly shoved in front of a camera and a photo was taken of me.  I was then taken to the mental health unit, on account of my schizoaffective disorder.

They meant to cause more harm to me, but it wound up being pretty all right.  They meant to hurt me, but ended up helping me by keeping me away from the general population.  Oops.  I’ll bet they didn’t think about that!

I was in my own cell and, except for various deputies and corrections officers walking by and threatening my life and with physical and sexual assault, it was as pleasant a place as one can be in a place like that.

The next morning, I was taken to the classification unit, where, as the name suggests, they decide where to put you.  Because of my prior military experience, I filled out a form and was about to be sent to the veterans’ unit.  But just then, my cell door opened, and an officer yelled at me to get downstairs.  I did and I was ushered back to where I was assaulted.  I was processed out and I practically ran out the door.

I was gone.

But the APD wasn’t done with me yet!  Within days of getting out, I found out that a detective had contacted my mental health professional, who dropped me because of what I wrote.  The question was: how did they find out whose office I went to?  Someone would really have to have access to very sensitive information about me.

Well, it didn’t take me long to find the person whom I believed was the source.  I accuse one Dave Bernacki, a detective who has family connections to very high-ranking church officials.

Yes, he had access to all of my information through his position of authority and through his father in law, in my former church. Back then, I, like him, was a Mormon.  Yes, I was at one point stupid enough to believe in the lies they peddle.

I left the church officially in 2024, but I became a baptized and confirmed Catholic two years prior to that.  Point is, Bernacki no longer holds any authority over me except for the obvious.

Based on an investigation that I did when I was dropped by my mental health professional, based on what I believe to be Bernacki’s actions, using my church information, it is my belief and allegation that he played a major role in trying to ruin my life.  Or at the very least, I believe that he handed over confidential information me without a warrant.  You can read an article that I wrote so that you too can learn all about Bernacki.

The idea was to get her to drop me so that I couldn’t get access to medications.  She did drop me, because the detective who phoned exaggerated greatly what I actually did.

At that point, without medications, I would have been non-compliant, and the detectives would then have been able to force me into the local mental health jail (that’s what I call it).  Once you’re in that system, you’re in for weeks or even months.   They knew that and that was their end game.

But they didn’t count on one thing: I don’t fold like a cheap suit.  Rather, I respond quickly and calmly to a crisis, even when my life hangs in the balance like it did here.  To the detectives’ chagrin, I was able to find another provider and I never skipped a beat on the medications, keeping myself out of the system.

Now, I don’t know whether Bernacki himself actually made the call, or if another detective used the information that he provided.  But it’s my firm belief that he was involved in some way, and all because of the mounds of documents that he had access to at church.

His father-in-law, Paul Mcgreevy, who at the time was the head guy in charge in the local congregation was, I believe, Bernacki’s source as he had unfettered access to my membership records.  I believe he fed that information to Bernacki and Bernacki who, I allege, then passed along the information with the sole intent of ruining my life.

Seeking accountability, I went to the Office of Professional Standards (IA) and filed a complaint against Bernacki and the officer who assaulted me without justification.  They practically threw me out of the office and, of course, took no action.  Bernacki tap danced out of accountability and so did the officer.  This is what you can expect from the APD, folks.

I then went to file a complaint against the deputy.  My complaint was processed and I soon got a form letter saying that some action was taken, but they couldn’t tell me what kind of action.  All that means is that they didn’t take any action but they want to pretend that they did.   I know how the system works, folks.

The police chief is very well aware of the allegations, but has refused to meet with me, showing that he gives his officers and detectives carte blanche to assault people who pose no threat.  But then again, he let a drunk driver stay on the force, so he can’t really be competent, now can he?

So what about Bernacki?  What am I supposed to make of him when I have so much evidence that backs up my allegations?  There’s not much that I can do to him other than expose him to the world for what and who he is.

And who is he?  As I wrote in a previous article, he spoke to a reporter with the local newspaper, the Times Union and made accusations that a local political figure called someone a nigger.

Indeed, he was known quite well for giving an interview to the Times Union, only to see his allegations be denied by more than one party, which in my opinion calls his integrity into question.  A detective without integrity is worthless.  And Bernacki’s worthless.

In that newspaper interview, one that he took it upon himself to make to a large audience, Bernacki alleged that a political candidate who, at the time was an assistant district attorney, allegedly used racial slurs against a biracial man in 2013.  Bernacki, at the time of the interview and the alleged incident, was and is a detective with the APD.

Bernacki made a pretty hefty accusation.  We don’t know whether the guy he accused actually did it, but if the guy did do it, he supposedly used the word “nigger.”  I don’t find that word to be a big deal.  Many people consider it to be offensive, but I don’t.  Bernacki made a mountain out of a mole hill by taking it upon himself to come forward and whine about the so-called “slur.”

So, what exactly did Bernacki say to the newspaper, you ask?

“Racial slurs were definitely used that night by Matt Toporowski, [d]etective David Bernacki said in a phone interview,” the Times Union reported.

What was Bernacki doing giving interviews, especially about this?  Bernacki is a city employee and should not be running to the media unless it’s in a professional capacity.  By doing so, and because of the serious allegations that me made, I would submit that he’s opened himself up to public scrutiny.

To quote Bernacki, his conduct, I feel, was “unprofessional,” something that he said with a gasp to both the woman who is currently my wife and I about a hospital nurse asking for my phone number a while ago, when I was in A-fib.

What I didn’t say at the time was this: I willingly wrote down my cell phone number for the nurse, thereby not making it unprofessional. Everything that happened as a result after that was consensual.  So, pot, kettle, black.  Unprofessional, my ass.  If she hadn’t been “unprofessional,” I would have missed out on “knowing” an awesome lady!

“Bernacki, a nine-year veteran of the force who was promoted to detective four years ago and works in the criminal investigative unit, was initially reluctant to comment about the incident when contacted by the Times Union. After first declining to go on the record, he called back to say he needed to ‘be upfront and honest’ and speak publicly about the incident.”

This sayeth the Times Union.

I don’t think, and it’s just my opinion, that he was “upfront and honest,” because several parties disputed his probably politically-motivated allegations. In fact, it’s my opinion that he’s the unprofessional one and I further believe that he lied.

Again, what business did he have getting involved in the first place?  Did he have a political motive?  Was he being bribed to say something?  Did he get some money in his pocket for speaking up with his allegedly false accusations?

We don’t know.

But wait!  There’s more!  A fellow police officer, Kyle Haller, begged to differ in that same interview.  He said no racial slurs were thrown about when he was on the scene of the alleged incident.  Another person also threw water on Bernacki’s dumpster fire.  At least two against one.  Hmmm.

Toporowski vehemently denied Bernacki’s hurtful and, in my own opinion, agenda-driven accusations.  Well, of course.  We have one detective making accusations with more than one party vouching for Toporowski, who was running for office at the time Bernacki came forward.  Hence the possible potential political motives.

As for Bernacki, he just couldn’t shut up.  The incident allegedly took place in December of 2013, and Bernacki conveniently hurled accusations that included allegations of Toporowski throwing his office title around while Bernacki was supposedly trying to de-escalate the situation.

Do I believe Bernacki?  No.  When more than one person casts doubt on accusations such as the ones Bernacki made against Toporowski, that’s a problem, in my opinion.

Addressing the potential motives of Bernacki, Toporowski told the newspaper, “I can’t speak to what Dave Bernacki thinks or does.”

That speaks volumes.

It, in my opinion, makes Bernacki seem like a fraud, a liar and a malicious, malicious pathetic excuse for a man.  Even if Toporowski did call someone a nigger, who cares?  Where was Bernacki then?  Why didn’t he run to the newspaper then?  Why didn’t he come forward immediately as opposed to when it benefited him the most?

Why did Bernacki come forward when it made him look like a credible guy, at least at first?  I think it’s because there was something in it for him.  But at the end of the day, it’s Bernacki who has to live with the moral implications of what he did or did not do.

Here comes information about our brave detective, and this time around, it’s all fair game, given what I believe that he did to me.

Bernacki lives in Delmar, a suburb of Albany that is inside the town of Bethlehem, where publicly available records show his address, an address supported by a mortgage filed by SEFCU with the county clerk in January of 2020.  This publicly available website confirms the information.

A background check website posted his correct personal cell phone number.  This phone number is supported by his publicly available listing as some sort of a coach or something.

I can confirm, from personal knowledge, that the number is correct.  Why he would choose to make it public is beyond me.  If he hadn’t made it so public, I would have held off on publishing it, but here we are.

He is also a landlord and frequently advertises his rental properties on Facebook, meaning that his phone number’s really out there, isn’t it?

Like most anyone else, Bernacki has career aspirations.  It looks like that at one point, he threw his hat in the ring to be a police sergeant. He only scored 79% there, but somehow he managed to become a detective.  Interesting.  The bar must be low in Albany.

Bernacki is in the city employee directory, although it has him listed as a police officer instead of a detective. He hasn’t been an officer in many moons.

His actions with the interview, I think, tells you what kind of a “man” David Christopher Bernacki is.  His middle name is fair game, because it’s used to ordain him in the LDS church, and because it’s readily available on the internet.  I didn’t have to stoop to low levels to get it.

Oh, here, meet his father, who allegedly made some questionable financial transactions, according to the Times Union.  Seems to me, in my opinion, that daddy’s a scumbag, and, well, like father, like son, I say.

And forgetteth not his wife, Hilary Joan Bernacki (her Facebook name is just Hilary Joan), her full name being provided by she herself and her profile was linked to by her husband for all to see, so there’s no reasonable expectation of privacy in that regard.

Again, this involves information that the Bernackis make available to all on his Facebook profile.  I didn’t have to go rogue at all here.  Hilary is the one who’s in overshare mode, whereas Dave doesn’t make much of his profile public.  I can’t stop you, the reader, from going to her very public Facebook profile.  There, you will see photographs that no intelligent parent would make available to the world.

After much internal debate, and after consulting with an attorney who advised me that I am well within my legal rights to directly link to Bernacki’s family photographs since their profiles are public, I have decided to just link to their profiles, which I was able to find by a simple Facebook search.

Anyone who knows their names can find them, meaning that anyone can find them with or without this article.  I wasn’t the one who made the choice to make their profiles public, a dumb move considering Bernacki’s career.

So, really, if you’re so bored that you want to troll through their profiles, that’s on you, but because his minor children aren’t involved in this, I feel that, despite how pissed I am at Bernacki for refusing to honor my reasonable request and for, allegedly, playing a role in what happened to me, their photographs shouldn’t be directly linked to.

Even though the kids’ parents are allowing anyone, and I mean anyone, to see photographs of said kids, none of whom deserve to be dragged into this just because their father’s a douchebag.

Then again, Bernacki does share quite a bit with the world, both on Facebook and in the media.  A cursory look through his profile shows that, during the pandemic, he sent a copy of a letter one of his kids wrote to the Times Union, and it was published.  He also posted pictures of projects his other kids did.  He seems quite content to share his family with the world, rather than limiting it to friends. So no expectation of privacy there.

My restraint is a favor to his children, who vary in age, and my restraint is absolutely not a display of kindness or respect towards Bernacki or his all-too-perky wife.

He better appreciate this, because I found a lot of photographs there that, if in the wrong hands, could be used for nefarious purposes, and it’s all right there in the open.  Me, I don’t care about him and his family.  I couldn’t care less if they burned to death in a house fire.

If I were the only one around when Bernacki had a heart attack or something, I’d stand idle, except for snapping some selfies.

That goes for his entire family and any and all local police officers, detectives and deputies as well. I’d watch them die right in front of me and I’d laugh as they faded to black.  Of course, that will almost certainly never happen, but I can dream, right?

Do they know that they’re being reckless with the details of their family life?  Do they care?  They have to know.  I mean, they’re not retards.  Well, then again, perhaps they are.

Surely they know so much information is up for grabs just by searching their names. Since someone who ran afoul of Bernacki would know his name, they can do what I did here if they were pissed off enough.  And that’s the point that I’m trying to make here.  It doesn’t take a genius.  Hopefully, this is a teachable moment for them.

Nothing I’ve posted in this article is private. And, again, I would have kept all of this to myself, but he just had to visit today, didn’t he?  He just had, according to a few sources, to abuse his church authority to my detriment, didn’t he?

Both Bernackis publish way too much information about their family.  It’s downright stupid what they’re doing.  I am not suggesting in any way that people bring harm to them.  Do not do something like that.

Oh, and here’s a funny story that Mcgreevy told me in confidence: when Bernacki was in basic training for the Army, he would phone his wife in tears.  Basic training, according to him, made Bernacki cry!  When I went through, I never shed a tear.  Interesting.

By the way, that’s the only honorable thing I have to say about Bernacki.  He did serve our country, and I do believe he’s still in the reserves.  I respect him for doing his part to defend our country, but that’s as far as my respect goes.  He’s not worthy of my respect in general.

As for the police department and its officers and detectives, there’s nothing I can do to pay them back.  Oh, wait, there is.  I am trained in first aid and CPR, so my plan to get revenge is, if the day should ever come, to stand idle if I see an APD person in medical peril.  I won’t call 911.  I won’t use their radio to call an “officer down.”

I won’t do anything except laugh at them and keep on walking.  That is how you get revenge, folks.  No matter who it is, even if they weren’t on the force at the time, they’re screwed if I’m the only person around.

So what happened here is that APD cops and detectives abused their power to bring physical and medical harm to me.  Nothing was done about it.  There’s nothing that I can do for revenge other than to wait for that wonderful day that one of them collapses of a medical emergency.  After that happens, I’ll just stand and watch and let nature take its course.

What happened to me in regards to my seizure is alarming.  People can die due to a seizure, you know.  If they attacked me while I was having one, then what will they do to someone who’s having a worse seizure than I did?  All the deputies did was mock and then ignore my seizure so that I could be assaulted.  What about the next guy?

Yes, what I did to the kid was wrong.  I admit that and I held myself accountable, which is the honorable thing to do.  Bernacki, in my opinion, is not honorable.  No officer or detective in the APD is honorable.  No county deputy is honorable.  They’re all scum, each and every one of them.  See where I’m going with that?

I deserved to get arrested.  I deserved that two years’ worth of probation, something that I did with honor.  I did not, however, deserve to be assaulted, neither physically nor sexually like I allege that I was.  I definitely did not deserve to be body slammed in a cell while I was having a seizure.  I did not deserve to have my seizure ignored.

But the actions of the officers, detectives and deputies were not appropriate.  And I will never forget what was done to me.  Any time that I can legally jam any of them up, I’m taking it.

Not helping with medical peril.

Not cooperating as a witness when seconds count, as in a kidnapping.  Even if lives are at stake, I will stand idle and quiet.  I will not be assisting at all in any way, shape or form.  As long as someone pays, I’m happy.  There is nothing that can be done or said to rectify what was done to me, but I can make someone pay by staying silent.

In order to at least try to be fair and balanced, which I don’t often do, I reached out to the APD, the ACSO and the DA’s office seeking comments as part of this article. Not a one of them responded.  Hey, at least I tried, right?

I’m very happy that I was able to expose Bernacki as potentially being a liar, supported by the fact that numerous people crawled out of the woodwork to dispute his tall tales.  Bernacki deserves everything bad that could possibly happen to him.  Every APD officer or ACSO deputy likewise deserves bad things to happen to them.

But as for you, the reader, know this: you cannot count on the APD to keep you safe.  If you live here, avoid the APD at all costs.  If you’re visiting, stay out of Albany.  It’s just safer that way.  Unless, of course, you want done to you what they did to me.