Oswego County Police Reform Plan Examined During County Legislative Meeting

OSWEGO – Sheriff Don Hilton and members of the Oswego County Sheriff’s Department met with the Oswego County Legislature, yesterday, March 4, to assess a draft of the Oswego County Police Reform Plan 2021.

The plan came about as a result of Governor Andrew Cuomo’s Executive Order No. 203, which requires all law enforcement agencies within New York state to adopt a revised Police Reform Policy.

The plan’s objective is to ensure increased safety within communities while cultivating mutual respect and trust between law enforcement and the public.

Yesterday’s meeting outline was a collaboration of ideas formulated together from law enforcement, public agencies, and the community over the past few months.

Discussions included a member of the OCO Crisis and Development Services Team along with county legislators and Sheriff’s Department officials, as they examined different courses of action to implement into the draft.

All seven recommendations were approved by the legislature, with the bulk of discussions centered on the fifth recommendation; that in assisting victims of domestic abuse, sexual violence and other violent crimes.

The legislature agreed on a list of acceptable actions to be enforced in the fifth recommendation, which will be included in the finalized version of the draft to be sent out to legislators next week.

A time and date for the next public hearing will be decided during the March 11 legislature meeting. The public is still encouraged to offer their comments at [email protected].

Sheriff Don Hilton ended the meeting by thanking everyone involved in the creation and development of the project.

Below are the recommendations listed in Oswego County Police Reform Plan:

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Recommendation No. 1:

Develop an online publication of policies and procedures, consistent with legal, operational and confidentiality requirements. This will allow for the public to access an increased transparency of Sheriff Office activities.

Actions:

• Develop a list of policies that can be published for public access.
• Develop a public access point on the County website.
• Complete these actions by August 30. 2021

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Recommendation No. 2:

Work with existing Mobile Crisis Team (MCT) to find more efficient and better ways to deal with mental health issues by working together synergistically, both with road patrol and 911 dispatches. MCT recently expanded to 24-hour coverage in Oswego County. This allows citizens with mental health issues that do not rise to a level requiring police presence to work with mental health professionals that can develop a mental health plan with follow up.

Actions:

• Reviewing existing policies relating to response actions.
• Coordinate with 911 to identify and refine dispatch criteria.
• Provide training to all officers on Mobile Crisis Team capabilities.
• Complete actions by June 30, 2021.

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Recommendation No. 3:

Provide publication of an annual report on Sheriff’s Office activities. This will allow for the public to see a compilation of annual activities of the department in a concise format.

Actions:

• Develop a standard format of data, statistics and narrative information detailing the entire scope of activities performed during a calendar year.
• Present the report annually to the Legislature in session no later than February 28, following the immediate previous year.
• This is a recurring action and will be first performed no later than Feb. 28, 2022.

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Recommendation No. 4:

Develop an enhanced civilian complaint/commendation reporting system by improving accessibility and developing an easy-to-use online reporting tool. Forms can be used to file civilian complaints and for commendations for the actions of officers. Submitted forms will be reviewed by a member of the command staff and assigned to the appropriate supervisor for action. A log of all complaints and the results will be maintained by command staff.

Actions:

• Develop a policy for soliciting and recording and answering complaints.
• Develop an accessible web-based site where complaints can be submitted.
• Completion date May 1, 2021.

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Recommendation No. 5:

Working with Oswego County Opportunities Services to Aid Families (OCO SAF) to assist victims of domestic abuse as well as victims of sexual assault and/or other crimes by educating members of programs available as well as provide information to victims on scene.

Actions:

• To be announced.

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Recommendation No. 6:

Develop and implement a Civilian Police Academy. The Oswego County Citizen Police Academy will be designed to strengthen the partnership between the police agencies of Oswego County and the citizens of Oswego County. The objectives of this program are:

-To encourage an increased communication and interaction between Law Enforcement Officers and the community which they serve

-To dispel misconceptions about the roles, responsibilities, and activities of law enforcement officers, to provide participants with a basic understanding of police powers and limitations imposed by law and police department policy

-To familiarize participants with the dangers, difficulties, and ambiguities inherent to modern police work and to foster a citizen police partnership to combat crime and develop a sager community.

Actions:

• Develop a policy for Civilian Police Academy. The policy should include a description of target audience, goals of the academy and a curriculum description.
• Develop a schedule.
• Develop a curriculum.
• Completion September 30, 2021.
• Note the completion date identifies the development work. The actual conduct of an academy will be performed at a time to be determined.

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Recommendation No. 7:

Implement a body worn camera program for the agency which will be used to support criminal investigations, collect evidence and document interactions during police activities.

Actions:

• Develop a specific policy for body camera use. Specific areas to address are usage requirements, i.e. who/when will they be required to be worn. Retention requirements for recordings.
• Develop a purchase request for approval. Considerations are compatibility, service longevity and maintenance.
• Develop training for implementation.
• Implement general distribution and deployment.
• Completion date – August 30, 2021.

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