To protect and serve
Here’s what Schenectady police didn’t do: Force an encampment of homeless people living in Vale Park to pack up and move out. Move out to where? Well, who cares where, as long as they’re not here.
And here’s what the police did do: Spend four months checking in on the folks in the park, bringing them food, earning their trust, roping in social service agencies and eventually relocating the members of the encampment, finding housing for three of them who wanted it.
It took patience — on the part of the police, and on the part of nearby homeowners, who might have been expecting a swift solution.
“I think it’s the way departments have to go,” Sgt. Nick Mannix told the Times Union’s Pete Demola.
Sgt. Mannix, who took the lead on the initiative, deserves credit: Instead of seeing the homeless people as the problem, he confronted the real problem — homelessness.
This is what community policing looks like: protecting and serving everyone. That’s right, everyone. It might not look like the policing we know. And that’s the point.
A bad decision reversed
The state constitution mandates that judges retire at age 70, but they can seek two-year extensions to continue serving until age 76. Last year, in a COVID -induced austerity frenzy, the court system denied recertifications for 46 of these longtime jurists — nearly all who’d applied. Now, the state is wisely backing off of that move: Chief Judge Janet Difiore says the court system has enough money to keep the judges on, and she encouraged them to renew their applications.
We’re glad to hear it, because it was a bad idea all around. Cutting a few dozen of the most experienced judges cost a lot of depth on the bench. The state also faced lawsuits calling the move ageist — and an appeals court agreed, ruling in December that the blanket denial was “unconstitutional and discriminatory.” To top it off, the plan was projected to save just a fraction of the $300 million gap the judiciary was trying to close. And if the judges weren’t replaced? Well, making courts run more slowly just as they’re dealing with a glut of backlogged cases is hardly fair to New Yorkers waiting for justice.
Sen. Brad Hoylman has announced legislation that would make it harder for officials to show older judges the door. It would make recertification automatic for jurists who are fit to serve and whose services are needed. That seems a sensible move to keep the system running smoothly.
New connections
Working from home, family meetups on Zoom, telehealth appointments, online schooling — after the year we’ve just had, there’s no denying it: Internet is a necessity. And helping underserved communities access fast, reliable internet is a matter of equity.
Albany is putting together a board to study the idea of a city-owned internet service. It’s an idea worth exploring: The local market could use the competition. In other cities that have launched such a service, it’s been an economic driver. And it aligns with Albany’s social justice aims: Up to 35 percent of residents lack access to high-speed broadband, according to city estimates.
Good for Albany for seeking innovative solutions to a very current problem. It’s a move other communities should watch, especially those with many people in need of broadband.