Who is Emily Hirshowitz? Lauded officer arrested after sending herself abusive texts and blaming colleagues
OSSINING, NEW YORK: A woman police officer was reportedly charged after she allegedly tried to falsely blame her colleagues for a crime that was apparently orchestrated by her. Emily Hirshowitz, who worked at the Ossining Police Department, had first alleged that she was threatened by "a fellow police officer or multiple police officers" as they sent her disturbing messages.
However, eventually, it was found that the 36-year-old was the one to send herself the messages. After the shocking discovery, she was arrested and pressed with three counts of first-degree filing a false instrument, a felony, and four counts of third-degree falsely reporting an incident at the Westchester District Attorney's Office in White Plains.
Who is Emily Hirshowitz?
Hirshowitz's LinkedIn page describes her as a "police officer at Village of Ossining Police Department and Court Appointed Supervisor." She has previously worked as a cop in the city of New Rochelle from 2013 to 2016. Her other work experiences include emergency medical technician, volunteer advocate, and legal secretary or assistant after graduating from Sacred Heart University.
Not just that, in 2018, Hirshowitz was honored with the Employee of the Year award by the Ossining Police Department. To congratulate her, the Department posted on its Facebook account, "Congratulations to Officer Hirshowitz, The Rotary Club of Ossining ‘2018 Employee of the Year!' Now, you may not know Officer Hirshowitz. She's relatively new to our community, having joined our Department in 2016. She doesn't particularly care for publicity but, during her time in Ossining, she's made a big impact." "Her accomplishments are a credit to our Department, to our community, and to the law enforcement profession. Please join us in congratulating Officer Hirshowitz, our 'Employee of the Year! If you see her on patrol, be sure to say Congratulations! She earned it!'," the post added.
'There's a lot of mystery'
Hirshowitz reportedly made the first fake accusations in May 2022 and went on to file a written complaint with the District Attorney's office regarding the same, as per The New York Post. At the time, she claimed, "fellow police officer or multiple police officers at my department are involved," The now-suspended with pay cop did not stop there as she also sent screengrabs of the alleged abusive messages to the investigators that said things like "dumb," "useless," and a "reject,"
However, in August 2022, Hirshowitz apparently told investigators that she did not want the case to be probed. Rather than acting on her request, the police chief held a meeting during which they started doubting that the woman herself was behind it. Then in October 2022, a warrant was issued to examine Hirshowitz's phone and iCloud account, which revealed she was responsible for orchestrating the menacing text messages. An ex-Ossining police officer Louis Rinaldi was also reportedly involved with her.
Subsequently, arrest and charges against Hirshowitz followed. Her lawyer Paul DerOhannesian has come forward saying, "There's a lot of mystery and confusion surrounding the allegations in this case and we'll evaluate as we learn more." She is scheduled to appear at the White Plains City Court on July 12.
