The police are still shooting at each other. Now, several of the Latino officers, who won a settlement from the city, don’t agree with the $26.8 million agreement signed by the National Latino Officers Association of America (NLOAA) and the New York City Police Department (NYPD).

The settlement gives monetary compensation to the minority officers who filed a suit against the NYPD for discrimination, and vengeful and unequal treatment from their superiors.

However, the signed document includes clause 38 that states: “Nothing expressed in this agreement indicates or establishes a precedent that the city has violated the rights of the persons who initiated this suit, in accordance with federal, state and municipal ordinances.”

For Rafael Collazo, former member of NLOAA and current president of the National Latino Officers Association, Inc. (NLOA), the agreement is not just. “It offers monetary compensation and proposes only temporary changes.”

However, for Anthony Miranda, president of NLOAA, the settlement vindicates the officers and proposes basic changes in the operation of the NYPD, which will protect minority police officers from future acts of discrimination and unjust sanctions.

“Many people have been affected by this and wish to close a bitter chapter in their lives. I believe the settlement is good for everyone concerned. The officers can file individual suits if they wish. A $20 million compensation speaks for itself as to the city’s culpability,” said Miranda.

Among the changes the NYPD must implement are the creation of a data base that will document the ethnicity, sex and age of the officer who files a complaint, as well as details of the supervisor responsible for affecting the disciplinary action, which caused the filing of the suit. It is expected that the data base will help establish a pattern for disciplinary actions.

“If we are able to see that a given officer has a record for disciplining minority officers more severely than another officer for the same infractions, then we can initiate a formal investigation. This was something that couldn’t be done before, “ said Lt. Robert Gonzalez.

Gonzalez, who has a masters in psychology, related that when he first sought a promotion to lieutenant, another officer made a baseless accusation, prompting an investigation. “This was done simply because I am Latino.”