On July 25, 2022, NPDF Founder & Executive Director Joseph Occhipinti was one of the keynote speakers at the 44th NAPO convention that took place in Cleveland, Ohio.
The National Association of Police Organizations (NAPO) is a coalition of police unions and associations from across the United States that is organized for the purpose of advancing the interests of America’s law enforcement officers through legislative advocacy, political action, and education.
Founded in 1978, NAPO is the strongest unified voice supporting law enforcement officers in the United States. NAPO represents more than 1,000 police units and associations, and more than 241,000 sworn law enforcement officers who share a common dedication to vigorous and effective representation on behalf of our nation’s law enforcement officers.
Joe spoke about his newly published memoirs, “FRAMED, I Never Stood A Chance” which discussed his 1991 landmark civil rights prosecution. It marked the first time in the United States any law enforcement officer was criminally charged for conducting good faith searches and seizures that involved no acts of police brutality, racial bias, or corruption. Instead, independent investigations, bipartisan congressional inquiries and published media reports documented how Joe was allegedly framed by a politically powerful drug cartel he was investigating.
Joe emphasized his concerns that that the newest tool being used by international drug cartels and crime syndicates in the United States is to use their political clout to make fabricated misconduct allegations to prosecute law enforcement officers, as well as terminate viable investigations into their illicit operations. It was these concerns and his injustice that prompted Joe to establish in 1995 the National Police Defense Foundation.
Fortunately, Joe had the unprecedented support from nationwide police organizations, civil rights groups, Members of Congress and even two American Presidents, George H.W. Bush and Donald J. Trump who granted him “Executive Clemency in 1993 and a “Full and Unconditional President Pardon” in December 2020, along with an apology for his injustice.
Special Thanks to NAPO Executive Director William J. Johnson and National President Michael McHale for inviting Joe to their convention and supporting National Police Defense Foundation.