By Ashley M. Casey

Associate Editor

As protests against police brutality continued throughout New York state, the nation and abroad, Gov. Andrew Cuomo signed into law a series of bills June 12 that seek to reform the criminal justice system.

The “Say Their Name” Reform Agenda includes:

• The repeal of Section 50-a of the state’s civil rights law, which concerns police disciplinary records

• A ban on chokeholds like the one that led to the death of Eric Garner in 2014

• Prohibiting discriminatory, race-based 911 calls

• The designation of the NYS Attorney General as an independent prosecutor in cases in which the death of an unarmed civilian is caused by law enforcement.

Cuomo also signed the “New York State Police Reform and Reinvention Collaborative” executive order, requiring police forces to adopt a reform plan by April 1, 2021. Police agencies could lose out on state funding if they do not develop such a plan and present it for the public’s consideration.

“These are issues that the country has been talking about for a long time, and these nation-leading reforms will make long overdue changes to our policing and criminal justice systems while helping to restore community confidence in law enforcement,” Cuomo said. “New York State is the progressive capital. We never sit back and say just what the nation should do — we show the nation what it should do, and we did that again today.”

Assemblymember Pam Hunter (128th District, Syracuse) is a member of the NYS Black, Puerto Rican, Hispanic and Asian Legislative Caucus (BPHA), which held a series of press conferences around the state June 4 in support of the “Say Their Name” agenda. Hunter detailed some of the bills in the package.

“Some of the bills, like Danny O’Donnell’s 50-a bill, have been around for years. While it has been loudly supported and advocated for in the community where we live … the bill hasn’t had a lot of traction until recently,” she said.

The repeal of 50-a expands public access to first responders’ personnel files, including complaints and disciplinary actions. Hunter said Minnesota does not have the same restrictions on police records, so previous complaints against Derek Chauvin, one of the Minneapolis police officers charged in the May 25 death of George Floyd, have been made public.

“If we pass 50-a, there is a way in which the public will know about prior misconduct. That may change behaviors for officers in the future,” Hunter said June 9, just before the Assembly voted on the bill.

Other bills in the BPHA Caucus’ package have not yet reached the governor’s desk. One such bill, which was passed by both the State Senate and the Assembly, would require law enforcement to provide medical attention for arrestees.

“Obviously, George Floyd said, ‘[I] can’t breathe’ — that’s a cry for medical attention,” Hunter said.

Hunter cited a case that is closer to home for her district. In 2013, Onondaga County was ordered to pay $385,000 to the family of Chuniece Patterson, who died in the Onondaga County Justice Center in 2009 of a ruptured ectopic pregnancy after her complaints of abdominal pain went ignored.

“You shouldn’t have to put a law like this in place,” Hunter said.

While Hunter and other lawmakers are hopeful the new laws will lead to positive change, the New York State Sheriffs’ Association and the New York State Association of Chiefs of Police released a letter June 11 calling the “Say Their Name” package “ill conceived, hastily crafted, and anti-police.” The letter, signed by  the associations’ respective presidents, Washington County Sheriff Jeffrey Murphy and Greece Police Chief Patrick D. Phelan, was addressed to Cuomo.

“There is a broad sense among law enforcement that you simply do not support police officers in this state. That lack of support is made evident once again by your failure to insist that law enforcement have a seat at the table when momentous changes in policing are being considered,” read the letter. “Law enforcement officers could provide important insight that would insure that any desired changes in the system would actually be workable. We have seen too many examples in the last few years of criminal justice legislation being pushed through in the dark of night without the opportunity for scrutiny or input from law enforcement, resulting in disastrous, unworkable laws.”

While many of the proposed police reforms were in the works long before George Floyd’s death, Hunter said the Minneapolis man’s death was a flashpoint in the fight against police brutality not just in the United States but across the world.

“I think it’s watching someone be murdered and crying out for help and not being able to breathe and crying out for his mother. Watching someone die before your eyes is life-changing,” she said. “When you have people marching in France and Spain and Germany where Nazis killed Jews, now they’re marching for a black man — I think that speaks volumes. The world is changing and now we need to, too. It’s really heartwarming to see so many countries, cities around the globe where they’ve had centuries of conflict come together in support over a black man in America.”

In the Syracuse area, Fayetteville-Manlius Students for Black Lives Matter, Cuse Youth BLM, BlackCuse Pride and other groups have led protests in recent weeks. Many of the protesters are high schoolers or college students.

“It’s providing hope,” Hunter said. “It’s a great thing to see young people interacting and advocating for what is right.”

For Hunter, the fight against racism and police brutality is personal. She is black, as is her 20-year-old son.

“It has been … stressful to say the least. It’s personal because it could be me or it could be my son or any of his friends. It’s unfortunately very real and it’s something that happens in our community and every day around the country,” she said. “He has had many friends who have been killed by gun violence and it’s always a concern. You go through the rules with your kid that white parents might not have to do with their child.”

Hunter said she hopes local municipalities will enact changes within their police departments such as increased training in sociological and psychological issues and racial bias training.

“We need to make sure there is not another George Floyd in our municipalities,” she said.