Committee puts out recs for Sheriff's Office
Mar. 6—PLATTSBURGH — The Clinton County Law Enforcement Review Committee released a draft plan summarizing its work and recommendations for improvements to Sheriff's Office policies and operations earlier this week.
The report, titled "Clinton County's New York State Police Reform and Reinvention Collaborative Plan," is available to the public via the county's website, clintoncountygov.com.
Public comment may be submitted until Monday, March 8, also through the website.
"What we tried to do with the recommendations was to keep ongoing progress in the forefront so people have a target to shoot at with regard to operations," Committee Chair Patrick McGill, a former Clinton County Court judge, told The Press-Republican.
EXECUTIVE ORDER
Like other state municipalities with a police agency, Clinton County was mandated under an executive order signed by Gov. Andrew Cuomo in June to conduct a comprehensive review of department policies and procedures, put forth recommendations that incorporate community feedback and adopt plans for improvement by April 1, 2021.
Cuomo signed the mandate amid renewed fervor for the Black Lives Matter movement and protests nationwide following the killing of George Floyd, a Black man, by Minneapolis police.
According to the plan, the county committee met five times. Those included a presentation by Clinton County Sheriff David Favro and Maj. Nicholas Leon in September, and public hearings in October and December.
In January, the group conducted a survey — whose findings are detailed in the report — which received 224 responses.
RECOMMENDATIONS
The committee outlined the following recommendations for the Sheriff's Office:
—Continue to complete the accreditation process currently being undertaken through the state Division of Criminal Justice Services
—Strengthen knowledge of and response to behavioral health, such as by exploring the utilization of state Office of Mental Health support for a Crisis Intervention Team (CIT) model or similar recognized program
—Explore programs such as the Law Enforcement Mental Health Referral System and 911 triage
—Strengthen knowledge and response to drug and alcohol addiction and associated incidents such as domestic violence, elder abuse or child abuse
—Continue to provide proper trainings for new staff and ongoing training for seasoned staff, as well as encourage and develop policies and strategies that support staff wellness and understanding of, among other things, anti-racism, implicit bias, LGBTQIA+ and disabilities
—Develop and disseminate informational programs to the public regarding community involvement and operations of/by the Clinton County Sheriff's Office. These may include the progress of accreditation, community activities, extent and nature of deputy training and recruitment policies, and continuing to allow the public, by appointment, to view policies and procedures
—Explore expanded use of body and dash-mounted cameras
ACCREDITATION
The recommendations did not include much in the way of quantitatively measuring success, such as by requiring a certain number of training hours or setting deadlines.
McGill said the legislature may go through the report and opt for specific directions.
"The problem was we did not want to conflict with the accreditation process since many of the issues we covered and recommended are covered some way in the accreditation process," he said.
Favro said a pre-accreditation evaluation took place two weeks ago.
"We have to make a couple changes and we have to make sure everybody is really up to speed and trained on it."
His office is hoping for a final evaluation in July or August, during which his department members will also be interviewed to ensure the policies are being implemented agency-wide.
PATROL DEMOGRAPHICS
The recommendations did not directly address recruitment of new members, though according to the New York State Law Enforcement Accreditation Program Standards and Compliance Verification Manual, agencies must indicate they are equal opportunity employers in job postings.
In a section of the report titled "Clinton County Sheriff's Office Demographics and Operational Information," the 31 members of the patrol division were broken down by sex: 27 males and four females.
Favro confirmed there are currently no persons of color on the patrol, but said civil service requirements are not written by his office and limit who they have to pick from.
He contended that diversity within law enforcement opportunities would necessitate adjustments at the state civil service level.
Favro recalled one instance where his agency interviewed two African-American candidates who he said ultimately were not interested. He said he was not sure if a lack of diversity in applicants had to do with the type of test or the local population base.
NEXT STEPS
According to the report, the committee will make any changes that it deems appropriate based on the feedback received through public comment.
McGill is set to present the plan to the legislature at its next regular meeting, which will take place via Zoom at 5:15 p.m. Wednesday, March 10.
Following that meeting, the Clinton County Legislature may adopt a plan via resolution at its March 24 meeting.
McGill said the committee might continue in some capacity, but he would not stay involved.
He said he was impressed by how the Sheriff's Office seemed to be on top of things, pointing to a list of 10 objectives the department provided for the report that ranged from updating policies, procedures and plans for dealing with behavioral health situations to requiring police officers to report discharge of weapons.
One objective that focused around engaging with minority populations described an open-door policy for the public to engage directly with Favro over concerns, participation in local events and a relationship with the Mohawk peoples of Ganienkeh that includes direct communication and regular meetings with the territory's governance.
COMMUNITY MEETINGS
Favro said he believed the most valuable piece of the report was the feedback through the survey, adding that he would like to conduct a more expansive one in order to reach more people.
He said his office would keep its eyes open for funding and task force trainings surrounding behavioral health, as well as explore opportunities to inform and educate the public, perhaps by expanding upon social media presence.
Favro added that discussions about the possibility of doing informal community meetings a couple times each year were ongoing, though he would prefer not to "pigeonhole" them to social issues such as race or diversity.
"I think we need to get back to somewhat of the basics. We're all people at the end of the day who we need to treat with respect and dignity.
"I think it's important that the department really values and understands the respective humanity and if we can get back to that, then I think we'll see less of the division between race and gender and the various other areas we're struggling with as a community."
Email Cara Chapman:
Twitter: @PPR_carachapman
