Review Of Village Police Department Is Complete
A Civilian Review And Reform Board Is Recommended
by Doug La Rocque
It is very important to note that even though the Police Review Committee is asking that a CRRB be established, their report found little to criticize with the Village Police Department; in fact the report had a very positive tone. The CRRB request is more in the line of helping to keep it that way.
The Police Review Committee was formed by the Village Board and met first in August of last year, in response to Governor Andrew Cuomo’s Executive Order that all localities that support a police department adopt a policing reform plan by April 1. That committee addressed the Village Trustees at the Tuesday, March 9 board meeting.
Speaking for the committee was Trish Bloomer, owner of the Sand Bar Restaurant. She indicated “the Committee believes that the Hoosick Falls Police Department has steadfastly, and largely successfully, pursued its goal of achieving the highest degree of safety possible in the community consistent with treating all citizens equally and with the utmost degree of dignity, honor and respect.” That being said, the report makes a number of recommendations.
* The Committee recommends that the Village and/or the Department initiate and implement new recruiting programs intended to encourage more hiring of local residents and also to diversify the police candidate pool.
* The Committee determined that the primary goal the people of Hoosick Falls want their Police Department to accomplish is to keep the community safe while treating all citizens equally and with dignity, honor and respect. The Committee therefore recommends that the Village continues to provide its officers with training in subjects such as crisis intervention, de-escalation techniques, mental health training, safe defensive tactics, use of force training, and training in the identification, investigation, prosecution and prevention of hate crimes. Additionally, bias and diversity training should be held on an annual basis.
* In keeping with the Committee’s primary goal of community safety, it is supportive of the current funding for the Police Department and a reduction is not recommended.
* The Committee also recommends that the Hoosick Falls Police Department continue to periodically review policies and procedures to ensure best practices are achieved.
* In order to assist the Village Board with the operationalization of the above recommendations, the Committee strongly recommends the immediate creation of a Civilian Review and Reform Board with accompanying authority to perform a number of tasks which include formalizing a civilian complaint process to review, investigate, advise and respond to concerns received from the public involving the HFPD, and incorporate provisions setting forth the details of that process into the Hoosick Falls Policies and Procedures Manual.
The Village Board plans a public hearing on the report at a special meeting on Tuesday, March 23 starting at 6 pm over a Zoom platform. Instructions on how to join that meeting will be posted on the Village’s website. The entire 19-page committee report is also avail for viewing on the website.
The complete report on the Village Board meeting appears on page 9.