REFORM PLAN SIGNED
Ulster County executive says justice reform initiatives could help stem tide of violence
KINGSTON, N.Y. » Ulster County Executive Pat Ryan said initiatives included in a plan to revamp and reform the county’s criminal justice system could help stem the tide of violence that has gripped the city in recent months by restoring the trust between the police and the communities it serves.
Ryan signed the final plan,
which was created under a mandate by Gov. Andrew Cuomo, on Wednesday, one day before the April 1 deadline to be submitted to the state.
The multiyear plan includes dozens of recommendations to address issues in four broad areas: Ending mass incarceration, strengthening police oversight and accountability, addressing
systemic racial bias and healing relationships between the public and the police.
Ulster County Sheriff Juan Figueroa, who sat on the Ulster County Criminal Justice and Reform Commission, said the plan represented a “people’s audit” of law enforcement and criminal justice in the county.
He said developing the plan was “a difficult process” that resulted in some “robust” discussions and “a lot of give-and-take,” but resulted in a plan that will improve criminal justice in the county.
“It was a difficult process but it was a good process that needed to be done,” Figueroa said.
The Rev. James Childs, another commission member, said initiatives in the plan will go far in creating the “beloved community,” envisioned by Martin Luther King Jr.
King envisioned a “beloved
community” as one based on justice, equal opportunity and the elimination of racism, Childs said.
“Dr. King spoke so eloquently about having a community of peace and justice for all and police reform was one of that ways that that vision could become a reality,” Childs said.
“If fulfilled,” Childs said of the plan, “it will be a giant step to bringing us to that beloved community Dr. King talked about.”
The plan includes immediate actions the county can take through resolutions, budget amendments and executive orders, as well as a five-year plan in each of the four broad categories that will enable county officials to track whether the county is taking the incremental steps needed to attain the longterm goals.
It will serve as a “road map,” Ryan said, to ensure that everyone in the community receives equal justice under the law and to restore trust between the community and the police responsible for enforcing the law.
He said restoring that trust is key to ending the unprecedented level of violence that has been seen in the city of Kingston in recent months.
There have been five incidents of gunfire in the city of Kingston since Feb. 27 and six fatal shootings since the fall of 2019, including two homicides that remain unsolved. Authorities in the past said the lack of community cooperation has been an impediment to solving those crimes.
“Those who are conducting that violence will absolutely and swiftly face the consequences though our criminal justice system but that only happens, by the way, if the community is willing to cooperate and work with the police to root out those that are doing that,” Ryan said.
“That has not been happening to a large degree so these reforms I think help effectuate that and actually do get deeper to the heart of what the problem is that is leading to the mistrust and ultimately the violence.
“... A lot of people don’t feel safe right now, even from the police that are supposed to be protecting them,” he said.
Following the unrest stemming from the death of George Floyd, Gov. Cuomo required that every municipality in the state with a police force perform “a comprehensive review of current police force deployments, strategies, policies, procedures and practices,” and file with the state a plan “to improve such deployments, strategies, policies, procedures and practices.”
The plan signed Wednesday by Ryan is specific to the Ulster County Sheriff’s Office and the county criminal justice system. The city of Kingston, as well as all other municipalities with police forces were also required to develop plans.