Kerik, Bernard B. 1955–

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KERIK, Bernard B. 1955–

PERSONAL: Born September 4, 1955; son of Donald and Patricia Kerik; married; second wife's name, Halah; children: Lisa; (second marriage) Celine, Angeline. Education: Empire State College, State University of New York, B.S.

ADDRESSES: Agent—c/o Author Mail, HarperCollins, 10 East 53rd St. 7th Floor, New York, NY 10019.

CAREER: Law enforcement officer. King Faisal Specialist Hospital, Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, chief of investigations for security office, 1982–84; Passaic County Jail, Passaic, NJ, warden, 1986, also served as Training Officer and Commander of the Special Weapons and Operations Units; New York Police Department (NYPD), New York, NY, served a variety of positions in uniformed and plains-clothes duty, 1986–94; New York City Department of Corrections, New York, NY, executive assistant to the commissioner and director of Investigations Units, then first deputy commissioner, c. 1994–97, commissioner, 1998–2001; City of New York, NY, police commissioner, 2000–01; interim minister of the interior, Iraq, 2003; senior vice president at Giuliani Partners, until 2004; chief executive officer of Giuliani-Kerik, LLC, until 2004. Served on New York City Gambling Control Commission, beginning 1997; former chair of annual fundraiser, Michael Buczek Foundation. Military service: U.S. Army; military policeman.

AWARDS, HONORS: Medal of Valor, New York Police Department.

WRITINGS:

The Lost Son: A Life in Pursuit of Justice, ReganBooks (New York, NY), 2001.

(With others) New York City Police Department Equal Employment Opportunity Policy, Police Department of the City of New York (New York, NY), 2001.

(Author of foreword) In the Line of Duty: A Tribute to New York's Finest and Bravest, ReganBooks (New York, NY), 2001.

ADAPTATIONS: The Lost Son was adapted as a film by Miramax.

SIDELIGHTS: Bernard B. Kerik is a former law enforcement officer who rose through the ranks to become New York City's police commissioner. Following the terrorists attacks the city on September 11, 2001, he gained an even higher profile and completed his autobiography, The Lost Son: A Life in Pursuit of Justice. In the book, Kerik paints much of his life as a quest to come to terms with his abandonment by his mother. During research for this book, he discovered that his mother had become a prostitute and was probably murdered. He grew up with his father and credits the process of earning a black belt in the martial arts with turning his life around. Kerik went on to serve in the U.S. military and then began a career in corrections that led him to the New York Police Department (NYPD). He recounts some of his exploits in the department in his autobiography, such as an undercover assignment to buy drugs in Harlem that resulted in a bust of Columbian drug lords and the seizure of millions of dollars of cocaine. In addition to his rise in law enforcement, Kerik writes about his relationship with former New York mayor Rudi Giuliani.

After the book's publication, Kerik served as interim minister of the interior in Iraq, where he trained members of the postwar the Iraqi police department. He was also nominated by President George W. Bush to replace Tom Ridge as Homeland Security secretary, but Kerik declined the nomination following allegations that he had abused his authority for personal advantage. Sam Somer wrote on the California Law Enforcement Command College Web site that he "liked this inspirational book and would highly recommend it for others to read." Writing in the New Yorker, Rebecca Mead noted that Kerik's book is a "testament to the rough-edged authenticity that endeared him" to the president. However, the reviewer also reflected on Kerik's downfall and commented, "The next edition of the book presents an opportunity for him to address various inconsistencies that have now come to light."

BIOGRAPHICAL AND CRITICAL SOURCES:

BOOKS

Kerik, Bernard B., The Lost Son: A Life in Pursuit of Justice, ReganBooks (New York, NY), 2001.

PERIODICALS

Atlanta Journal-Constitution, December 4, 2004, Julia Malone and Eunice Moscoso, "Nominee Started as Beat Cop for Homeland Security, Bush Looks Back to 9/11," p. A6.

New Yorker, January 10, 2005, Rebecca Mead, "Busted," p. 27.

New York Times, November 9, 2001, Christopher Drew, "Family Secret Is Revealed in Autobiography," p. D1.

Publishers Weekly, November 26, 2001, Daisy Maryles, "A Top Cop's Tale," p. 15.

Successful Meetings, March, 2002, Michelle Gillan Fisher, "Walking a New Beat: New York City's Former Top Cop Is Now Patrolling the Speaker's Circuit," p. 156.

Washington Post, December 9, 2004, Richard Cohen, "The Commish of Homeland Insecurity," p. A33.