THE WORLD READS WHITE PLAINS CITIZENETREPORTER — 8,324,077 VISITS IN ONE YEAR

WPCNR THE LETTER TICKER. From Greenburgh Town Supervisor Paul Feiner. June 14, 2019:

Recently, four black bear sightings were reported in Hastings, Scarsdale, Greenburgh (Boulder Ridge) and in White Plains.

The sightings occurred within a period of four days.   

The New York State DEC will not remove bears from our neighborhoods unless they feel they pose a danger to residents. When I spoke to the NYS DEC they mentioned that we can expect more bear sightings in southern & central  Westchester in the future.

Some residents have questions or concerns about black bears. At the Greenburgh Town Board meeting on June 24th at 7 PM, Emily Carrollo, a wildlife biologist at the NYS DEC, will speak and answer questions and explain DEC policies.

If you have questions that you would like asked at the meeting  please e mail them to me at [email protected]. If you would like to participate in the meeting (which will be held remotely via zoom), send me an e mail and we will send you a link to the meeting. 

After the meeting is over the town of Greenburgh will prepare a you tube video and share it with residents whenever black bear concerns come up.

PAUL FEINER
Greenburgh Town Supervisor

WPCNR ALBANY ROUNDS. From Chairman of the Westchester County Board of Legislators Benjamin Boykin. June 13, 2020:

On Friday, June 12, Governor Andrew Cuomo signed into law a series of police reforms passed earlier in the week by the state legislature.  This is transformative and historic. 

These reforms included a repeal of a measure that shielded police disciplinary records from public review, which 16 members of the Westchester County Board of Legislators had urged passage of in a letter to our state legislative delegation.

The “Say Their Name” Reform Agenda package was passed following the killing of George Floyd and an ongoing pattern of police brutality against minority communities across the nation. These landmark policing reforms will help reduce inequality in policing and reimagine the state’s criminal justice system. The reforms include:

• Allowing for transparency of prior disciplinary records of law enforcement officers by repealing 50-a of the civil rights law;
• Banning chokeholds by law enforcement officers;
• Prohibiting false race-based 911 reports; and
• Designating the Attorney General as an independent prosecutor for matters relating to the civilian deaths.

In addition, on June 12, the Governor signed an Executive Order requiring local police agencies to develop a plan that reinvents and modernizes police strategies and programs in their community based on community input. Each police agency’s reform plan must address policies, procedures, practices and deployment, including, but not limited to use of force.

Police forces must adopt a plan by April 1, 2021 to be eligible for future state funding and certify that they have:

• Engaged stakeholders in a public and open process on policing strategies and tools;
• Presented a plan, by chief executive and head of the local police force, to the public for comment;
• After consideration of any comments, presented such plan to the local legislative body (council or legislature as appropriate) which has approved such plan (by either local law or resolution); and
• If such local government does not certify the plan, the police force may not be eligible to receive future state funding.

These welcome reforms are overdue and we look forward at the County Board of Legislators to doing our part to implement them and continue to work further to ensure that policing in Westchester is fair and equitable.