Racism claim unsubstantiated, sheriff says
VanBlarcum takes heat from local clergymen over black officers not being promoted
KINGSTON, N.Y. » Three Kingston clergymen believe the Ulster County Sheriff’s Office suffers from systemic corruption and racism under the leadership of Paul VanBlarcum, a claim the sheriff said is unsubstantiated.
In a letter to the editor, the Rev. Frank Alagna of Holy Cross/ Santa Cruz Episcopal Church, the Rev. Jim Childs of Pointe of Praise Church and the Rev. G. Modele Clarke of New Progressive Baptist Church wrote that they recently met with three Ulster County corrections officers who filed a federal anti-discrimination lawsuit against two of their superior officers and the sheriff. They said that as the case progresses, they believe it is important to bring the substance of the matter to “broad public attention.”
The employment discrimination lawsuit to which the clergymen referred was filed Aug. 30, 2016, in federal court for the Northern District of New York on behalf of Ulster County Corrections Officers Norman L. James, Tyrone Brodhead, Alphonso A. Lacey and Pamela Lancaster and former Corrections Officer Timothy Ross. It names the county as a defendant, along with VanBlarcum and county jail wardens John Becker and Louis T. Russo Sr., all of whom are white.
The suit alleges the five black officers were kept from job advancement while their white counterparts were nurtured and promoted.
VanBlarcum said this week that
he could not comment on the pending litigation, but he said he found it hard to believe that men who lead flocks and teach about faith and forgiveness would convict someone based on unproven accusations.
“It’s a shame they would write that [letter] not knowing anything about the case,” the sheriff said.
VanBlarcum said he personally recruited Childs and Clarke to be part of the Ulster County Police Chiefs Association, which meets monthly. He said the two came to one meeting and never returned.
“The aggrieved officers are all skilled and competent with long histories of good service,” the clergymen said in their letter. “Yet they have seemingly been passed over repeatedly for job promotions. According to the lawsuit, the sheriff and his officers routinely award the better jobs to their white junior
colleagues, heirs apparent to an Old White Boys Club.”
The letter said the lawsuit “documents a culture of systemic racism and explicit white bias,” and it expresses hope that justice will be delivered through the court.
“Sheriff VanBlarcum has been quite vocal about the need to strictly adhere to the law when it comes to civil infractions by our undocumented neighbors,” the letter states. “But he does no more than pay lip service to the law when his white officers are involved.”
The letter says an external bureau to investigate the Sheriff’s Office is necessary and long overdue.
Alagna said Tuesday that the letter was written in support of the officers who filed the lawsuit, and he noted that it references a white officer who was promoted after he threw a sharp object at a woman’s face, causing a cut that required multiple stitches. The incident occurred prior to VanBlarcum
becoming sheriff, but he is the one who promoted that officer, Alagna said.
“It’s reason for concern,” Alagna said. “It’s reason for the public to be concerned.”
VanBlarcum noted he had a black officer who was arrested for drunken driving under his watch. He said the officer was suspended and demoted, but then stayed out of trouble for many years and has since been promoted.
The drunk-driving case and the sharp object being thrown both occurred while the officers were off duty, VanBlarcum said, and “I draw a fine line between off duty and on duty.”
He also said he currently has two white officers who were arrested for off-duty incidents and have been suspended without pay.
The sheriff said there are agencies that can investigate his office if a complaint is made, such as the state attorney general. And he said he welcomes such investigations.
“My doors are always open,” he said.