Bernard Bailey Kerik (September 4, 1955 – May 29, 2025) was an American consultant, police officer, and convicted felon who was the 40th Commissioner of the New York Police Department from 2000 to 2001. Kerik joined the

New York City Police Department The City of New York Police Department, also referred to as New York City Police Department (NYPD), is the primary law enforcement agency within New York City. Established on May 23, 1845, the NYPD is the largest, and one of the oldest, munic ...

(NYPD) in 1986. He served from 1998 to 2000 as commissioner of the New York City Department of Correction and from 2000 to 2001 as

New York City Police Commissioner The New York City police commissioner is the head of the New York City Police Department and presiding member of the Board of Commissioners. The commissioner is appointed by and serves at the pleasure of the mayor. The commissioner is responsibl ...

, during which he oversaw the police response to the

September 11 attacks The September 11 attacks, also known as 9/11, were four coordinated Islamist terrorist suicide attacks by al-Qaeda against the United States in 2001. Nineteen terrorists hijacked four commercial airliners, crashing the first two into ...

. Kerik conducted two extramarital affairs simultaneously, using a

Battery Park City Battery Park City is a mainly residential planned community and neighborhood on the west side of the southern tip of the island of Manhattan in New York City. It is bounded by the Hudson River on the west, the Hudson River shoreline on the nor ...

apartment that had been set aside for first responders at

Ground Zero A hypocenter or hypocentre (), also called ground zero or surface zero, is the point on the Earth's surface directly below a nuclear explosion, meteor air burst, or other mid-air explosion. In seismology, the hypocenter of an earthquake is its p ...

. After the 2003 invasion of Iraq, President

George W. Bush George Walker Bush (born July 6, 1946) is an American politician and businessman who was the 43rd president of the United States from 2001 to 2009. A member of the Bush family and the Republican Party (United States), Republican Party, he i ...

appointed Kerik as the

interior minister An interior minister (sometimes called a minister of internal affairs or minister of home affairs) is a Cabinet (government), cabinet official position that is responsible for internal affairs, such as public security, civil registration and iden ...

of the Iraqi

Coalition Provisional Authority The Coalition Provisional Authority (; , CPA) was a Provisional government, transitional government of Iraq established following the 2003 invasion of Iraq, invasion of the country on 19 March 2003 by Multi-National Force – Iraq, U.S.-led Co ...

. In 2004, Bush nominated Kerik to lead the

Department of Homeland Security The United States Department of Homeland Security (DHS) is the U.S. federal executive department responsible for public security, roughly comparable to the interior, home, or public security ministries in other countries. Its missions invol ...

. However, Kerik soon withdrew his candidacy, explaining that he had employed an undocumented immigrant as a

nanny A nanny is a person who provides child care. Typically, this care is given within the children's family setting. Throughout history, nannies were usually servants in large households and reported directly to the lady of the house. Today, modern ...

. His admission sparked state and federal investigations. In 2006, Kerik pleaded guilty in Bronx Supreme Court to two unrelated misdemeanor ethics violations and was ordered to pay $221,000 in fines. In 2009, Kerik pleaded guilty in the

Southern District of New York The Southern District of New York is a federal judicial district that encompasses the counties of New York (Manhattan), Bronx, Westchester, Rockland, Putnam, Orange, Dutchess, and Sullivan. Federal offices or agencies operating in the distri ...

to eight federal

felony A felony is traditionally considered a crime of high seriousness, whereas a misdemeanor is regarded as less serious. The term "felony" originated from English common law (from the French medieval word "''félonie''") to describe an offense that r ...

charges for

tax fraud Tax evasion or tax fraud is an illegal attempt to defeat the imposition of taxes by individuals, corporations, trust (property), trusts, and others. Tax evasion often entails the deliberate misrepresentation of the taxpayer's affairs to the tax au ...

and

making false statements Making false statements () is the common name for the United States federal process crime laid out in Section 1001 of Title 18 of the United States Code, which generally prohibits knowingly and willfully making false or fraudulent statements, or ...

. In February 2010, he was sentenced to four years in federal prison, of which he served three years. In 2020, he obtained a

presidential pardon A pardon is a government decision to allow a person to be relieved of some or all of the legal consequences resulting from a criminal conviction. A pardon may be granted before or after conviction for the crime, depending on the laws of the j ...

from President

Donald Trump Donald John Trump (born June 14, 1946) is an American politician, media personality, and businessman who is the 47th president of the United States. A member of the Republican Party (United States), Republican Party, he served as the 45 ...

for his federal convictions for tax fraud, ethics violations, and criminal false statements. After the

2020 United States presidential election United States presidential election, Presidential elections were held in the United States on November 3, 2020. The Democratic Party (United States), Democratic ticket of former vice president Joe Biden and California junior senator Kamala H ...

, Kerik supported Trump's false claims of voter fraud and attempted to help overturn the election results.

Early life and education

Kerik was born in

Newark, New Jersey Newark ( , ) is the List of municipalities in New Jersey, most populous City (New Jersey), city in the U.S. state of New Jersey, the county seat of Essex County, New Jersey, Essex County, and a principal city of the New York metropolitan area. ...

, on September 4, 1955, the son of Patricia Joann (née Bailey) and Donald Raymond Kerik Sr. His mother was

Irish American Irish Americans () are Irish ethnics who live within in the United States, whether immigrants from Ireland or Americans with full or partial Irish ancestry. Irish immigration to the United States From the 17th century to the mid-19th c ...

. His paternal grandfather was an ethnic Slovak who emigrated from

Western Ukraine Western Ukraine or West Ukraine (, ) refers to the western territories of Ukraine. There is no universally accepted definition of the territory's boundaries, but the contemporary Ukrainian administrative regions ( oblasts) of Chernivtsi, I ...

(then the

Russian Empire The Russian Empire was an empire that spanned most of northern Eurasia from its establishment in November 1721 until the proclamation of the Russian Republic in September 1917. At its height in the late 19th century, it covered about , roughl ...

) to a

coal Coal is a combustible black or brownish-black sedimentary rock, formed as rock strata called coal seams. Coal is mostly carbon with variable amounts of other Chemical element, elements, chiefly hydrogen, sulfur, oxygen, and nitrogen. Coal i ...

-mining town in

Pennsylvania Pennsylvania, officially the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, is a U.S. state, state spanning the Mid-Atlantic (United States), Mid-Atlantic, Northeastern United States, Northeastern, Appalachian, and Great Lakes region, Great Lakes regions o ...

and changed his surname from Kapurik to Kerik. Kerik was raised

Catholic The Catholic Church (), also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the List of Christian denominations by number of members, largest Christian church, with 1.27 to 1.41 billion baptized Catholics Catholic Church by country, worldwid ...

and grew up in

Paterson, New Jersey Paterson ( ) is the largest City (New Jersey), city in and the county seat of Passaic County, New Jersey, Passaic County, in the U.S. state of New Jersey.Eastside High School in Paterson, and dropped out in 1972. In July 1974, he enlisted in the

United States Army The United States Army (USA) is the primary Land warfare, land service branch of the United States Department of Defense. It is designated as the Army of the United States in the United States Constitution.Article II, section 2, clause 1 of th ...

and received a General Educational Development (GED) certificate from the State of

North Carolina North Carolina ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Southeastern United States, Southeastern region of the United States. It is bordered by Virginia to the north, the Atlantic Ocean to the east, South Carolina to the south, Georgia (U.S. stat ...

while assigned to

Fort Bragg Fort Bragg (formerly Fort Liberty from 2023–2025) is a United States Army, U.S. Army Military base, military installation located in North Carolina. It ranks among the largest military bases in the world by population, with more than 52,000 m ...

. After leaving the New York City Police Department, he received a B.S. in social theory, social structure and change, from

Empire State College Empire State University (SUNY Empire) is a public university headquartered in Saratoga Springs, New York. It is part of the State University of New York (SUNY) system. Empire State University is a multi-site institution offering associate degre ...

of the

State University of New York The State University of New York (SUNY ) is a system of Public education, public colleges and universities in the New York (state), State of New York. It is one of the List of largest universities and university networks by enrollment, larges ...

in 2002.

Career

Military

After dropping out of high school, Kerik enlisted in the U.S. Army and served in the

Military Police Military police (MP) are law enforcement agencies connected with, or part of, the military of a state. Not to be confused with civilian police, who are legally part of the civilian populace. In wartime operations, the military police may supp ...

, stationed in Korea.

Private sector

After leaving the Army, Kerik worked as a security expert in the Middle East; for a time, his clients included the Saudi royal family.

Law enforcement

From December 1981 to October 1982 and then July 1984 to July 1986, Kerik worked at the Passaic County sheriff's office, in

New Jersey New Jersey is a U.S. state, state located in both the Mid-Atlantic States, Mid-Atlantic and Northeastern United States, Northeastern regions of the United States. Located at the geographic hub of the urban area, heavily urbanized Northeas ...

. He served as the department's training officer and commander of special weapons and operations, and ultimately chief and warden of the Passaic County jail. Kerik worked from 1982 to 1984 as chief of investigations for the security division of the King Faisal Specialist Hospital in

Riyadh Riyadh is the capital and largest city of Saudi Arabia. It is also the capital of the Riyadh Province and the centre of the Riyadh Governorate. Located on the eastern bank of Wadi Hanifa, the current form of the metropolis largely emerged in th ...

, Saudi Arabia. Six members of the hospital security staff, including Kerik, were fired and deported after an investigation in 1984 by the Saudi secret police. In his autobiography, Kerik wrote that he was expelled after a physical altercation with a Saudi secret police interrogator. However, in 2004, after his nomination as Secretary of Homeland Security, nine former employees of the hospital told ''

The Washington Post ''The Washington Post'', locally known as ''The'' ''Post'' and, informally, ''WaPo'' or ''WP'', is an American daily newspaper published in Washington, D.C., the national capital. It is the most widely circulated newspaper in the Washington m ...

'' that Kerik worked with a hospital administrator (Nizar Feteih) to surveil people's private affairs, leading to a scandal partly based on Feteih's use of "the institution's security staff to track the private lives of several women with whom he was romantically involved, and men who came in contact with them." Kerik and Feteih (among others) were fired and Kerik deported. Kerik joined the

in 1986.Bernard Kerik Fast Facts
CNN (last updated March 4, 2020). He first met Rudolph W. Giuliani in 1990, and during the 1993 New York City mayoral election campaign, served as Giuliani's bodyguard and driver. He joined the New York City Department of Corrections in 1994, and enjoyed a series of promotions with Giuliani's backing. He was credited with reducing violence among the city's jail inmates. Giuliani appointed Kerik commissioner of the city Department of Corrections, a post he served in from 1998 to 2000. Giuliani appointed Kerik the 40th Police Commissioner of New York City on August 21, 2000. Giuliani made the appointment against the advice of the outgoing police commissioner Howard Safir and many members of his own cabinet. Kerik's critics noted that he did not have a college degree, which at the time was a requirement for police officers to advance to the rank of captain and above. As police commissioner, Kerik had a tense relationship with the

FBI The Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) is the domestic Intelligence agency, intelligence and Security agency, security service of the United States and Federal law enforcement in the United States, its principal federal law enforcement ag ...

, in part because he criticized federal agencies for not sharing enough intelligence with local police. Although crime in New York dropped during Kerik's tenure, he was sometimes criticized for abuse of power. ''

The New York Times ''The New York Times'' (''NYT'') is an American daily newspaper based in New York City. ''The New York Times'' covers domestic, national, and international news, and publishes opinion pieces, investigative reports, and reviews. As one of ...

'' reported that: "Behind the scenes Mr. Kerik ruled like a

feudal Feudalism, also known as the feudal system, was a combination of legal, economic, military, cultural, and political customs that flourished in Middle Ages, medieval Europe from the 9th to 15th centuries. Broadly defined, it was a way of struc ...

lord. Moreover, many former employees have said he had taken up with a woman who was a correction officer; he was accused of directing officers to staff his wedding. He befriended the agency's inspector general, whose watchdog responsibilities require keeping an arms-length relationship, and the investigator attended his wedding." On one occasion, Kerik sent homicide investigators to interview and fingerprint a number of

Fox News The Fox News Channel (FNC), commonly known as Fox News, is an American Multinational corporation, multinational Conservatism in the United States, conservative List of news television channels, news and political commentary Television stati ...

employees whom Kerik's publisher,

Judith Regan Judith Regan (born August 17, 1953) is an American editor, producer, book publisher, and television and radio talk show host. She is the head of Regan Arts. Early life and education Regan grew up in Fitchburg, Massachusetts and Bay Shore, New Y ...

, suspected of stealing a necklace and mobile phone. During his time as police commissioner he made five arrests, including one involving two ex-convicts—one a paroled killer, wanted for a

carjacking Carjacking is a robbery in which a motor vehicle is taken over.Michael Cherbonneau, "Carjacking," in ''Encyclopedia of Social Problems'', Vol. 1 (SAGE, 2008: ed. Vincent N. Parrillo), pp. 110-11. In contrast to car theft, carjacking is usually i ...

at gunpoint in Virginia—for allegedly driving a stolen van in

Harlem Harlem is a neighborhood in Upper Manhattan, New York City. It is bounded roughly by the Hudson River on the west; the Harlem River and 155th Street on the north; Fifth Avenue on the east; and Central Park North on the south. The greater ...

. Kerik was serving as police commissioner during the

. He was in his office when

American Airlines Flight 11 American Airlines Flight 11 was a domestic Airline, passenger flight that was hijacked by five al-Qaeda terrorists on the morning of September 11, 2001, as part of the September 11 attacks. The hijacked airliner was deliberately crashed into ...

hit the North Tower. He arrived at the base of the North Tower three minutes before

United Airlines Flight 175 United Airlines Flight 175 was a domestic passenger flight from Logan International Airport in Boston to Los Angeles International Airport in California that was hijacked by five al-Qaeda terrorists on the morning of September 11, 2001, as ...

hit the South Tower, showering him and his staff with debris as Giuliani, Kerik, and their top aides were trapped inside a building at 75 Barclay Street. The September 11 attacks gave Kerik a national profile. Kerik served 16 months as commissioner, leaving office on December 31, 2001, at the end of Giuliani's term. During a televised Fox News joint interview of himself and Giuliani with Jeanine Pirro on June 6, 2020, Kerik stated that "over the eight-year period that Giuliani was in office, we dropped the

violent crime A violent crime, violent felony, crime of violence or crime of a violent nature is a crime in which an offender or perpetrator uses or threatens to use harmful Force (law), force upon a victim. This entails both crimes in which the violence, vio ...

by 63 percent, dropped the

murder Murder is the unlawful killing of another human without justification (jurisprudence), justification or valid excuse (legal), excuse committed with the necessary Intention (criminal law), intention as defined by the law in a specific jurisd ...

icby 70 icoverall in the city."

Return to private sector

Following his departure from the

, he was employed by Giuliani Partners, a consulting firm formed by Giuliani. He was the senior vice president at Giuliani Partners and

chief executive officer A chief executive officer (CEO), also known as a chief executive or managing director, is the top-ranking corporate officer charged with the management of an organization, usually a company or a nonprofit organization. CEOs find roles in variou ...

of Giuliani–Kerik LLC, an affiliate of Giuliani Partners. Kerik resigned from these positions in December 2004. In March 2005 he created The Kerik Group LLC, where he served as chairman until June 2009, consulting in crisis management and risk mitigation, counterterrorism and law enforcement, and jail/prison management strategies.Caribbean Net News: Kerik finally gets Guyana contract
He served as an adviser and consultant to

King Abdullah II Abdullah II (Abdullah bin Hussein; born 30 January 1962) is King of Jordan, having ascended the throne on 7 February 1999. He is a member of the Hashemites, who have been the reigning royal family of Jordan since 1921, and is traditionally reg ...

of the

Hashemite Kingdom of Jordan Jordan, officially the Hashemite Kingdom of Jordan, is a country in the Southern Levant region of West Asia. Jordan is bordered by Syria to the north, Iraq to the east, Saudi Arabia to the south, and Israel and the occupied Palestinian ter ...

and to President

Bharrat Jagdeo Bharrat Jagdeo (born 23 January 1964) is a Guyana, Guyanese politician who has been serving as Vice President of Guyana since 2020, in the administration of President of Guyana, President Irfaan Ali. He had previously also held the office from 19 ...

of the Republic of Guyana. He oversaw threat and vulnerability assessments for a ruling family in the

United Arab Emirates The United Arab Emirates (UAE), or simply the Emirates, is a country in West Asia, in the Middle East, at the eastern end of the Arabian Peninsula. It is a Federal monarchy, federal elective monarchy made up of Emirates of the United Arab E ...

and also worked on crime reduction and national security strategies in

Trinidad and Tobago Trinidad and Tobago, officially the Republic of Trinidad and Tobago, is the southernmost island country in the Caribbean, comprising the main islands of Trinidad and Tobago, along with several List of islands of Trinidad and Tobago, smaller i ...

Interim Minister of Interior of Iraq

In May 2003, during

Operation Iraqi Freedom The Iraq War (), also referred to as the Second Gulf War, was a prolonged conflict in Iraq lasting from 2003 to 2011. It began with the invasion by a United States-led coalition, which resulted in the overthrow of the Ba'athist governm ...

, Kerik was appointed by the

administration as interim Interior Minister of the

, the governing body of occupied

Iraq Iraq, officially the Republic of Iraq, is a country in West Asia. It is bordered by Saudi Arabia to Iraq–Saudi Arabia border, the south, Turkey to Iraq–Turkey border, the north, Iran to Iran–Iraq border, the east, the Persian Gulf and ...

, and senior policy adviser to U.S. presidential envoy to Iraq,

Paul Bremer Lewis Paul Bremer III (born September 30, 1941) is a retired American diplomat. He was the second ''de facto'' head of state of Iraq as leader of the Coalition Provisional Authority (CPA) following the 2003 invasion of Iraq by the United State ...

. When Kerik arrived in Iraq, the Ministry of Interior did not exist, having collapsed and dissolved during the U.S.–led coalition's invasion of Iraq. Kerik was responsible for restructuring and rebuilding the ministry and all its constituent parts: the national police, intelligence service, and border and customs police, as well as choosing the officials who would take control of these institutions when he left. Prior to Kerik's departure from Iraq on September 2, 2003, more than 35,000 Iraqi police were reinstated, 35 police stations were placed in Baghdad, with several more around the country, senior deputy interior ministers were appointed, and the newly established governing council appointed the first Iraqi minister of interior, post–

Saddam Hussein Saddam Hussein (28 April 1937 – 30 December 2006) was an Iraqi politician and revolutionary who served as the fifth president of Iraq from 1979 until Saddam Hussein statue destruction, his overthrow in 2003 during the 2003 invasion of Ira ...

, Nuri Badran. A

United Nations The United Nations (UN) is the Earth, global intergovernmental organization established by the signing of the Charter of the United Nations, UN Charter on 26 June 1945 with the stated purpose of maintaining international peace and internationa ...

UNODC The United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC; French: ''Office des Nations unies contre la drogue et le crime'') is a United Nations office that was established in 1997 as the Office for Drug Control and Crime Prevention by combining the ...

fact-finding mission report dated May 18, 2003, at the beginning of his term, noted that Kerik's team made "positive interventions in a number of areas." During his tenure as Interior Minister of Iraq, Kerik secretly accepted and failed to report a $250,000 interest-free "loan" from Israeli billionaire , for which he was later indicted by the U.S. government and sentenced to prison.

Nomination as U.S. Secretary of Homeland Security

On December 3, 2004, Kerik was nominated by President Bush to succeed

Tom Ridge Thomas Joseph Ridge (born August 26, 1945) is an American politician and author who served in the Presidency of George W. Bush, George W. Bush administration as the Assistant to the President for Homeland Security from 2001 to 2003 and as the U ...

United States Secretary of Homeland Security The United States secretary of homeland security is the head of the United States Department of Homeland Security, the federal department tasked with ensuring public safety in the United States. The secretary is a member of the Cabinet of the ...

. Incoming

Attorney General In most common law jurisdictions, the attorney general (: attorneys general) or attorney-general (AG or Atty.-Gen) is the main legal advisor to the government. In some jurisdictions, attorneys general also have executive responsibility for law enf ...

Alberto Gonzales vetted Kerik during that nomination period. On December 10, after a week of press scrutiny, Kerik withdrew acceptance of the nomination. Kerik stated that he had unknowingly hired an undocumented worker as a nanny and housekeeper. Similar violations of

immigration law Immigration law includes the national statutes, Primary and secondary legislation, regulations, and Precedent, legal precedents governing immigration into and deportation from a country. Strictly speaking, it is distinct from other matters such as ...

had previously caused the withdrawal of the nominations of Linda Chavez as secretary of labor by

and of Zoë Baird and Kimba Wood for

attorney general In most common law jurisdictions, the attorney general (: attorneys general) or attorney-general (AG or Atty.-Gen) is the main legal advisor to the government. In some jurisdictions, attorneys general also have executive responsibility for law enf ...

President President most commonly refers to: *President (corporate title) * President (education), a leader of a college or university *President (government title) President may also refer to: Arts and entertainment Film and television *'' Præsident ...

Bill Clinton William Jefferson Clinton (né Blythe III; born August 19, 1946) is an American politician and lawyer who was the 42nd president of the United States from 1993 to 2001. A member of the Democratic Party (United States), Democratic Party, ...

. Shortly after withdrawing his name from consideration, Kerik became the target of a New York State

grand jury A grand jury is a jury empowered by law to conduct legal proceedings, investigate potential criminal conduct, and determine whether criminal charges should be brought. A grand jury may subpoena physical evidence or a person to testify. A grand ju ...

investigation by the Bronx District Attorney's Office, and later, the United States Attorney's Office.

Criminal investigation and convictions

On November 8, 2007, Kerik was indicted by a federal

White Plains, New York White Plains is a city in and the county seat of Westchester County, New York, United States. It is an inner suburb of New York City, and a commercial hub of Westchester County, a densely populated suburban county that is home to about one milli ...

on charges of

and

to the federal government about the $250,000 he received from Wertheimer. Prosecutors further accused Kerik of receiving about $236,000 from New York real estate mogul Steven C. Witkoff between 2001 and 2003. Some of the New York charges were dropped in December 2008, but Kerik was then re-indicted on the same charges in

Washington, D.C. Washington, D.C., formally the District of Columbia and commonly known as Washington or D.C., is the capital city and federal district of the United States. The city is on the Potomac River, across from Virginia, and shares land borders with ...

On November 5, 2009, Kerik pleaded guilty to eight felony tax and false statement charges, specifically two counts of

, one count of making a false statement on a loan application, and five counts of

. He was sentenced to 48 months in federal prison and three years' supervised release (

probation Probation in criminal law is a period of supervision over an offence (law), offender, ordered by the court often in lieu of incarceration. In some jurisdictions, the term ''probation'' applies only to community sentences (alternatives to incar ...

). Kerik was represented by criminal defense attorney Michael F. Bachner. He surrendered to the U.S. minimum security prison camp in

Cumberland, Maryland Cumberland is a city in Allegany County, Maryland, United States, and its county seat. At the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, the city had a population of 19,075. Located on the Potomac River, Cumberland is a regional business and comm ...

, on May 17, 2010. He was discharged from federal custody on October 15, 2013, and after serving five months' home confinement, his supervised release concluded in October 2016. Kerik was granted a presidential pardon for his federal convictions by President

on February 18, 2020.

2020 presidential election

On November 7, 2020, following the

, Kerik stood behind Giuliani, then Trump's personal lawyer, during the Four Seasons Total Landscaping press conference in

Philadelphia Philadelphia ( ), colloquially referred to as Philly, is the List of municipalities in Pennsylvania, most populous city in the U.S. state of Pennsylvania and the List of United States cities by population, sixth-most populous city in the Unit ...

. Shortly after

Joe Biden Joseph Robinette Biden Jr. (born November 20, 1942) is an American politician who was the 46th president of the United States from 2021 to 2025. A member of the Democratic Party (United States), Democratic Party, he served as the 47th vice p ...

's victory over Trump in the

, Kerik claimed to have evidence of widespread voter fraud, falsely claiming that Trump had actually won the election. On December 31, 2021, Kerik forwarded a letter to the

United States House Select Committee on the January 6 Attack The United States House Select Committee to Investigate the January 6th Attack on the United States Capitol (commonly referred to as the January 6th Committee) was a Select or special committee (United States Congress), select committee of the ...

holding hearings regarding the 2021 Capitol riot indicating his conditional willingness to testify as to his knowledge of that event. He provided documents that included the outline of a strategy to overturn the election, and his involvement in securing space at the

Willard Hotel The Willard InterContinental Washington, commonly known as the Willard Hotel, is a historic luxury Beaux-Arts hotel located at 1401 Pennsylvania Avenue NW in Downtown Washington, D.C. It is currently a member of Historic Hotels of America, th ...

, nearby the Capitol, for the Trump team's "war room" and the Kerrick firm's billing of over $55,000 for rooms there for legal personnel, plus $10,000 in travel expenses. Among the documents was a "strategic communications plan" proposed for the "GIULIANI PRESIDENTIAL LEGAL DEFENSE TEAM", 22 pages long, envisioning a 10-day blitz, outlining a campaign intended to persuade Republican Congressional members, in particular swing-state senators and representatives, to vote against certification of the 2020 election results. It recommended promoting negative characterizations of the conduct of the election employing such terminology as, "Fraudulent Ballots", "Dead people voted", and "Underage people voted". The senators specifically targeted included Pat Toomey from Pennsylvania and

Ron Johnson Ronald Harold Johnson (born April 8, 1955) is an American businessman and politician serving as the Seniority in the United States Senate, senior United States Senate, United States senator from Wisconsin, a seat he has held since 2011. A Rep ...

from Wisconsin, and representatives from their states plus Arizona, Georgia, Michigan and, from Nevada,

Mark Amodei Mark Eugene Amodei ( ; born June 12, 1958) is an American lawyer and politician serving as the United States House of Representatives, U.S. representative for Nevada's 2nd congressional district since 2011. The only Republican Party (United Stat ...

. Among the documents Kerik provided was one sent by Giuliani associate Maria Ryan. She had received a proposed plan from

QAnon QAnon ( ) is a far-right conspiracy theories in United States politics, American political conspiracy theory and political movement that originated in 2017. QAnon centers on fabricated claims made by an anonymous individual or individuals kno ...

conspiracy circulator Ron Watkins on November 11, 2020, which was meant to facilitate the overturning of the election. She forwarded it the next day to her team member Kerik. Watkins stated he had discovered "weak points" in voting machines manufactured by

Dominion Voting Systems Dominion Voting Systems Corporation is a North American company that produces and sells electronic voting hardware and software, including voting machines and tabulators, in Canada and the United States. The company's headquarters are in Toro ...

. Ryan forwarded to Ron Watkins the Kerik offer to help overturn the election. The Watkins plan for Trump to remain in office incorporated what was termed an "astroturfing cult". The instruments for effectuating the plan were to utilize an army of social media

MAGA "Make America Great Again" (MAGA, ) is an American political slogan most recently popularized by Donald Trump during Donald Trump 2016 presidential campaign, his successful presidential campaigns in 2016 and Donald Trump 2024 presidential cam ...

posters and gathering protests outside the homes of lawmakers as a means of intimidation. Kerik's attorney Tim Parlatore confirmed in August 2023 that his client was one of thirty unindicted co-conspirators referenced in the

Fulton County, Georgia Fulton County is a county in the north-central portion of the U.S. state of Georgia (U.S. state), Georgia. As of the 2020 United States census, the population was 1,066,710, making it the state's most populous county. Its county seat and most ...

, indictment of former president Donald Trump and eighteen other named co-conspirators. Kerik was alleged to have spoken with politicians in Pennsylvania and Arizona regarding the fake electors scheme following the 2020 presidential election that Trump lost.

Awards and honors

Kerik earned 30

NYPD The City of New York Police Department, also referred to as New York City Police Department (NYPD), is the primary law enforcement agency within New York City. Established on May 23, 1845, the NYPD is the largest, and one of the oldest, munic ...

medals for excellent, meritorious, and heroic service, including the New York City Police Department Medal for Valor for his involvement in a gun battle in which his partner was shot and wounded and he and his team members returned fire. As a result of his work on and in the aftermath of the September 11 attacks, he was honored by Her Majesty

Queen Elizabeth II Elizabeth II (Elizabeth Alexandra Mary; 21 April 19268 September 2022) was Queen of the United Kingdom and other Commonwealth realms from 6 February 1952 until Death and state funeral of Elizabeth II, her death in 2022. ...

with an honorary appointment as Commander of the Most Excellent Order of the British Empire (CBE). Kerik received honorary doctorates from

Michigan State University Michigan State University (Michigan State or MSU) is a public university, public Land-grant university, land-grant research university in East Lansing, Michigan, United States. It was founded in 1855 as the Agricultural College of the State o ...

New York Institute of Technology The New York Institute of Technology (NYIT or New York Tech) is a Private university, private research university, research university founded in 1955. It has two main campuses in New York (state), New York—one in Old Westbury, on Long I ...

, Manhattanville College, College of New Rochelle, and Iona College, and he received the President's Medal from

Hunter College Hunter College is a public university in New York City, United States. It is one of the constituent colleges of the City University of New York and offers studies in more than one hundred undergraduate and postgraduate fields across five schools ...

Personal life

Kerik's first child, a girl, was born in October 1975 when he was 20 and serving in South Korea as a military policeman. In February 1976, Kerik completed his tour of duty in South Korea and abandoned his daughter and her mother. Her mother emigrated to the U.S. and married an American. She learned of Kerik's life decades later when she saw him on television and notified their daughter of his location. Kerik wrote in his autobiography that the episode was "a mistake I will always regret, and I pray to God that one day I can make it right." Kerik was married three times. His first marriage was in August 1978; he and his wife were divorced in 1983. Kerik's second marriage lasted from September 1983 to July 1992; the marriage produced a son. Kerik's third marriage took place in 1998, and the couple had two daughters. In 2001 Kerik published a memoir, ''The Lost Son: A Life in Pursuit of Justice'', a ''

New York Times ''The New York Times'' (''NYT'') is an American daily newspaper based in New York City. ''The New York Times'' covers domestic, national, and international news, and publishes opinion pieces, investigative reports, and reviews. As one of ...

'' best-seller. In March 2015, Kerik published his second book, ''From Jailer to Jailed: My Journey from Correction and Police Commissioner to Inmate 84888-054'', documenting the 13 prior years of his life including his incarceration and personal observations of the U.S. criminal justice system. Kerik was close friends starting in 1995 with Larry Ray, who was later accused of running a sex cult at

Sarah Lawrence College Sarah Lawrence College (SLC) is a Private university, private liberal arts college in Yonkers, New York, United States. Founded as a Women's colleges in the United States, women's college in 1926, Sarah Lawrence College has been coeducational ...

. Ray donated $7,000 to help pay for Kerik's November 1998 wedding and reception, and was the best man at Kerik's wedding."Sarah Lawrence Parent Accused of Sex Trafficking and Abusing Students,"
''The New York Times''.Eric Lipton and William K. Rashbaum (December 14, 2004)

''The New York Time''s. Shortly after, Kerik helped Ray obtain a job as security director with a construction company run by Frank DiTommaso and his brother known as Interstate Industrial Corporation, where a portion of Ray's responsibility was to assist the business in obtaining a license from city regulators, as the business faced allegations that it was tied to

organized crime Organized crime is a category of transnational organized crime, transnational, national, or local group of centralized enterprises run to engage in illegal activity, most commonly for profit. While organized crime is generally thought of as a f ...

. In 2000, Ray and Kerik had a falling out, around the time that Ray was indicted for

racketeering Racketeering is a type of organized crime in which the perpetrators set up a coercion, coercive, fraud, fraudulent, extortionary, or otherwise illegal coordinated scheme or operation (a "racket") to repeatedly or consistently collect a profit. ...

, and Ray began to cooperate as a cooperating witness with prosecutors who were investigating Kerik, and whose investigation ultimately led to Kerik being convicted and imprisoned. In 2019 Kerik said: "Larry Ray is a psychotic con man who has victimized every friend he's ever had. It's been close to 20 years since I last heard from him, yet his reign of terror continues." In 2022, Ray was convicted of

extortion Extortion is the practice of obtaining benefit (e.g., money or goods) through coercion. In most jurisdictions it is likely to constitute a criminal offence. Robbery is the simplest and most common form of extortion, although making unfounded ...

forced prostitution Forced prostitution, also known as involuntary prostitution or compulsory prostitution, is prostitution or sexual slavery that takes place as a result of coercion by a third party. The terms "forced prostitution" or "enforced prostitution" app ...

, and

forced labor Forced labour, or unfree labour, is any work relation, especially in modern or early modern history, in which people are employed against their will with the threat of destitution, detention, or violence, including death or other forms of ...

, and sentenced to 60 years in prison. Kerik died from a heart ailment in a

Manhattan Manhattan ( ) is the most densely populated and geographically smallest of the Boroughs of New York City, five boroughs of New York City. Coextensive with New York County, Manhattan is the County statistics of the United States#Smallest, larg ...

hospital on May 29, 2025, at the age of 69. He was also previously treated for skin cancer.

References

Notes

Bibliography

: This article was originally based on information fro
New York City's official website
* ''War Stories: Behind the Silver and Gold Shields'', Thomas J. Ward, Bernard B. Kerik (Looseleaf Law Publications, 2002)

Bernard B. Kerik (Regan Books, 2001) (autobiography) * ''In the Line of Duty'', Bernard B. Kerik (Regan Books, 2001) * ''Imperial Life in the Emerald City'', Rajiv Chandrasekaran * ''Never Forget: An Oral History of September 11, 2001'', Mitchell Fink and Lois Mathias (Regan Books, 2002) * ''Leadership'', Rudolph W. Giuliani (Miramax Books, 2002) * ''The Cell: Inside the 9/11 Plot, and Why the FBI and CIA Failed to Stop It'', John Miller, Michael Stone, and Chris Mitchell * ''My Year in Iraq'', L. Paul Bremer III (Simon & Schuster 2006)

External links

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