Saratoga police, sheriff partner
Agreement will increase law enforcement presence in downtown
Days after city police officials blamed an uptick in violence on the social justice movement and suspects coming from Albany, Police Chief Shane Crooks announced a police partnership that will increase law enforcement presence in downtown Saratoga Springs.
Crooks said city police would partner with the Saratoga County Sheriff ’s Office and State Police. His short statement on Friday did not attribute the increased police presence to recent crime, however, but rather increased foot traffic downtown.
“Over the last four weeks, we have seen an increase in the amount of people coming out to patronize our downtown business district,” Crooks said in the statement Friday. “Over the next eight weeks, you will see an increased presence of police officers from all three agencies patrolling Saratoga Springs. This initiative is another example of the involved agencies’ commitment to the public safety of our community.”
The partnership comes amid an unusual meeting and press conference at City Hall on Monday. At the event, Assistant Chief John Catone asked neighboring law enforcement agencies and the public to help city police end violence, which recently included a brawl at the top of Caroline Street and a roving band of local teens picking fights in parks and playgrounds.
Catone and Public Safety Commissioner Robin Dalton said the Caroline Street brawl early Saturday morning June 26 could be attributed to “gang members from Albany” coming to the city because, the officials said, suspects sell drugs for double the price. Catone also said the alleged fighters want to provoke confrontations with city police because social justice and police reform advocates have labeled the members of their department “racist,” which Catone said is a lie.
Lexis Figeureo, who leads the Black Lives Matter movement in Saratoga County, expressed shock about Catone’s comments earlier this week.
“That’s insane,” Figeureo said. “It’s literally disgusting.”
Figuereo said that he wasn’t on the scene, but heard through the grapevine who was causing the trouble. “I do know some details of what happened on Saturday because I’m a bartender,” he told the Times Union earlier. “It was Saratoga people, Saratoga kids who I went to elementary school with here and have moved to Albany. Stop the fear-mongering.”
Last Saturday morning at about 2 a.m., one person was stabbed in a brawl on Caroline Street that involved about 15 to 20 people.
As for incidents Congress Park, which included more than one victim who were allegedly beat up by juveniles, Dalton said she needs parents and the Saratoga Springs City School District to get involved, especially since the school that can discipline students by removing them from sports teams and clubs.
Police say extra help is essential because recent weekends have been as crowded as Travers Stakes weekend, the Saratoga Race Course’s most popular race in August. Police say they’re bracing for another busy weekend with the upcoming July 4 holiday.