the culture within the NYPD is well-known and going against it is a recipe for disaster for any individual. if the fucking federal government and the top law officer in the country (AG) is threatening you, in order to protect extremely powerful political figures, you take it serious. Especially having some idea of the type of corruption they were trying to cover-up, it would be unwise to go against that force. If not for you, for the other members of your "brotherhood" who may have their lives completely destroyed and for which you would bear some responsibility. I'm certain the small group of people in-the-know about this evidence discussed the merits among themselves and considered the likelihood of conditions improving in the future to ensure this information got out, without enduring the costs being threatened by the AG. It's easy to forget post-election how dire and powerless the situation was prior to Trump's taking power. It's been a process but if you look back you can see that he's been gaining and consolidating power this entire time. It really does feel like a different environment and he's establishing a situation where "law and order" can be restored - exactly as he promised and made a centerpiece of his campaign during the nominating convention. It should be no surprise that only after that credibility is established can the truly damaging stuff come to light - it was simply too risky for individuals prior to having a backstop from Trump. This is why he's always going out of his way to appreciate the military and the police and others - he's building trust and backing it up because he knows that they have the ability to really move the dial on all of this, but first they have to know he can and will protect them. At this point, if you doubt Trump's sincerity and willingness to take bullets in service of the truth, you're a fucking fool.