Duty to Members Comes First

Norman Seabrook was convicted on bribery charges in large part because two top officials of the Correction Officers Benevolent Association testified to the secretive manner in which he handled $20 million in investments made in a hedge fund that later went bankrupt, withholding key information from them and making one $5-million transaction without telling them.

While those maneuvers were occurring, however, they didn’t rein in the longtime president. Mr. Seabrook could be an intimidating presence, and taking him on directly could have led to their being drummed out of their union positions. But failing to question a popular-but-imperious leader wound up costing COBA $19 million from the dubious investment.