By Russ Tarby
Contributing Writer
At its Dec. 21 meeting, the Liverpool Village Board of Trustees unanimously approved the appointment of Sgt. Gerald Unger to the position of provisional chief of police.
Unger will take over on Jan. 9, the day after the retirement of current Chief Donald Morris.
In his letter of resignation, Morris recommended that the trustees promote Unger as the new head of the department. Unger is expected to take a Civil Service examination in March in order to qualify for the top job. After he passes the test, he will be permanently appointed chief.
The trustees set Unger’s annual salary at more than $78,000.
Morris is 57 years old and has worked in law enforcement for 37 years. Unger, a veteran of the U.S. Navy, is 49 years old. He was hired as a police officer in Liverpool in 2009 and earned a promotion to sergeant in 2016.
The Liverpool Police Department now includes four full-time officers – Unger, Sgt. Dave Sturtz, officers Sean Pierce and Kevin Greenwood – and seven part-timers – Dave Butler, Sean Edwards, John Linnertz, Marcus Lukins, Rob Marshall, John Praskey, Dana Vinch and Taylor Zinter, plus part-time clerk Brenda Giacchi.
Last week, the village board approved the hiring of Taylor Zinter, a 2020 police academy graduate, as a new part-timer here. Unger recommended Zinter who presently works part time for the villages of Chittenango and Pulaski.
“Taylor’s got a lot of heart and he’s good at talking with people,” Unger said. “Both his father and grandfather worked in law enforcement.”
Lights on the Lake gridlock
Liverpool Mayor Gary White and Unger met with Onondaga County’s new parks commissioner, Brian Kelley, on Dec. 16 to discuss the way vehicles lined up for the 31st annual Lights on the Lake display are causing traffic to back up along village streets.
“It’s a serious problem,” White said, “but they’re trying some things and making some progress.”
The village officials learned that Lights on the Lake is now limiting ticket sales to 1,650 on any given night. Tickets are only available in advance and must be purchased online. The drive-thru attraction opened this year on Nov. 16 and will run through Jan. 10, from 5 to 10 p.m. daily.
Since Nov. 16, the village has experienced seven nights during which traffic ground to a standstill due to the queuing of cars waiting – sometimes up to two hours each – to enter the drive-thru.
Three DWIs, 12 crashes in November
According to a memo from Morris provided to village trustees at their Dec. 21 meeting, officers made 153 traffic stops and issued 116 citations for violations of the state’s vehicle and traffic laws during November.
Three arrests were made for driving while intoxicated, and 12 traffic accidents were investigated.
Officers made 155 residential checks during the month while investigating a total of 485 incidents.
The department arrested 15 individuals last month on 23 criminal charges.
