Image courtesy of Spectrum News.
Governor Andrew Cuomo’s Executive Order 203, issued on July 12, 2020, in the wake of an upsurge in Black Lives Matter protests, mandated every municipality in New York State to convene a task force to study issues with policing and suggest policy reforms to local governments.
Following the death of George Floyd at the hands of the Minneapolis Police department this summer, protests erupted across the country, bringing to the forefront of the public's attention the systemic white-supremacy culture of policing in the United States. Although we are in a moment of national reckoning for many White people who chose ignorance for decades, it is important to recognize that Black and other non-white Americans have been facing racially biased policing for centuries. Executive Order 203 aims to change local law enforcement policies in order to “mitigate police-involved deaths and racially biased law enforcement.” On February 12th, the Saratoga Springs Police Reform Task Force held a Zoom meeting for the Skidmore community to provide an update on their investigation and proposed reforms.
Earlier this month, members of the Skidmore community gathered virtually to hear from Professors Winston Grady-Willis and Terry Diggory along with Jason Golub, one of the Co-Chairs of the task force. The task force, composed of 13 members – 8 of whom identify as people of color – is charged with reviewing the policies of the Saratoga Springs Police Department (SSPD). The majority of the group’s work has occurred in sub-committees, all of which can be found on the task force’s website.
Grady-Willis, Diggory, and Golub all acknowledged the extensive number of issues prevalent with policing in the United States. The task force identified approximately 12 issues they believe need the most immediate reforms, centered around transparency between the community and the SSPD. Most importantly, they aim to reevaluate the current use of force policy to emphasize de-escalation and the preservation of human life at the foreground of all SSPD actions.
After opening remarks, the task force leaders highlighted the work of three sub-committees: the Use of Force Policy sub-committee, the Police Culture and Mission sub-committee, and the Youth sub-committee.
Golub emphasized the critical need to evaluate and reform the current SSPD use of force policy. The task force believes the use of force should be a last resort and wants to create policy that reflects this belief and more importantly, see this policy change implemented into the culture of the SSPD. The existing SSPD policy does not focus on de-escalation, preservation of life, or alternatives to the use of force. The eight-page training policy at present only contains one page on de-escalation tactics. The recommendation thus includes expanded policy in alternatives to force, specifically alternatives to physical and non-deadly force which prioritizes de-escalation and outlines clear steps for officers to take in order to deescalate situations.
The task force is proposing a new independent board to review use of force cases with a reliable and transparent process in order to strengthen reporting and investigation in use of force situations. Additionally, the committee is endorsing requiring a minimum amount of force policy with specific guidelines on how officers should act.
However, in order for new policies to be fully implemented into the SSPD, the task force recognizes the need to change the culture of policing within the department. Diggory spoke about the work of the Police Culture and Mission sub-committee which is advocating for a Community Centered Justice Initiative (CCJI). CCJI aims to recognize the problematic culture of policing within Saratoga and the nation as a whole. The sub-committee's recommendations include the city engaging with an external consultant to review the SSPD, a new SSPD mission statement, and the creation of a civilian review board to investigate the grievances and complaints surrounding the use of force policy.
During the Q&A portion of the meeting, a question was raised regarding how effective the power of the board would be. In response, members of the task force explained they are advocating for the civilian review board to have robust investigative power including the ability to subpoena and swear in witnesses to conduct due process. However, the findings of the board will not be binding and only be recommendations made to the Commission of Public Safety.
Grady-Willis provided insight into the proposals of the Youth sub-committee, which has held meetings with college-age members of Saratoga, including three Skidmore students, to discuss their experiences with the SSPD. They expressed concerns about the lack of respect with which the SSPD treats residents, including the focus and prioritization of wealthy residents. At the time of the task force’s meeting to inform the Skidmore community of their actions, the Youth sub-committee was working to hold another meeting with high school-age residents of Saratoga.
On November 17th, the task force presented their final recommendations which are currently under a two-week public comment period. Once this period is over the City Council will have a month to make comments. On April 1st, the Council must “adopt a plan by local law or resolution ... and implement the recommendations,” according to the task force website.
As highlighted by Golub during the meeting, the next step is for the SSPD to implement the policy recommendations. The ability to begin to possibly change the culture of the SSPD cannot occur unless the SSPD and City Council integrate the recommendations into policy. Public pressure and attention to these reforms are imperative to creating action. In order to gather as much information as possible about the proposed recommendation, the task force has designed a survey. The survey, which is due at the end of February 28th and can be found on the task force’s website and at the end of this article, is anonymous and will not be used to identify individuals but rather to find trends and patterns in community opinions in order to address them.
Despite an effort to raise awareness for the meeting through school-wide emails, only approximately 84 Skidmore community members attended the forum. Much more community involvement is necessary to implement real change. In order to turn recommendations into action, Skidmore students and the Saratoga community as a whole must continue to pay attention to the reforms and place public pressure on the City Council to act.
The link to the task forces’ survey can be found below: https://survey.alchemer.com/s3/5800463/Saratoga-Policing-Survey. This semester, Skidmore News is committed to providing the Skidmore community with up to date and in-depth coverage of local politics. Stay tuned to our page and Instagram (@skidmorenews) for following articles.