An online cheat sheet to an NYPD promotion test gave applicants who failed an unfair advantage when it came to passing the make-up test, nine lieutenants allege in a new lawsuit.
The officers filed suit Thursday against the city in Manhattan federal court, a month after The Post exclusively reported that a cheating scandal was running rampant within the department one where make-up test-takers passed at rates eight times higher than those who took the original exam.
In the lawsuit, the lieutenants allege that sergeants who failed on their first go of the April 18, 2015 test formally known as Lieutenants Promotional Exam No. 5535 had two months to study questions and answers that were posted on cop blog Rising Star prior to the make-up date.
The blog contained a photo showing all of the correct answers which were identical to an answer key eventually provided to cops during a protest session in which officers could complain about questions they think are unfair or erroneous, the suit says.
Of the 2,401 sergeants who took the April 18 test, only 164 or 6.8 percent passed, compared to 48 percent who passed of the 80 officers who took the makeup, court documents say.
Sergeants who took the make-up test Jewish applicants who observe the Sabbath, others who were on military leave, and sergeants injured when the test was first offered passed at a significantly higher rate, The Post previously reported.
We will review all the claims, said a spokesman for the city Law Department.
An internal investigation into whether the testing process was corrupted is still ongoing, according to a police official.
At the end of the day, you want to focus on the people who may have been involved in the wrongdoing and not penalize those who did nothing wrong, said the official. Its a real dilemma here because you have to be fair to everybody.
