Police Commission

POLICE COMMISSION February 25, 2021 Minutes VIA ZOOM MEETING PRESENT: Chairman Jim Sponaugle, Commissioner Liz Starr, Chief F. Michael Catalano, Deputy Chief Paul Sandy, and Diane Ferri. EXCUSED: Commissioner Trish Hansen. CALL TO ORDER The regular meeting of the Police Commission was held on February 25, 2021 via Zoom Meeting. Comm. Sponaugle called the meeting to order at 10:04 a.m. A. MINUTES – On the motion of Comm. Starr, second by Comm. Sponaugle the Commission approved the minutes of the January meeting as corrected. B. BILLS –The Commission reviewed the January bills totaling $22,079.28 and were approved on the motion of Comm. Sponaugle, second by Comm. Starr. C. REPORTS – The reports as approved on the motion of Comm. Starr, second by Comm. Sponaugle, were highlighted as follows: 1. Year-To-Date Budget – The Chief reviewed the new budget figures with the Commission. 2. Vehicle Maintenance – The Deputy Chief apprised the Commission of the Tahoe purchasing issue for 2021 and reviewed possible options for new car purchases for the year. 3. Overtime - Various categories of overtime hours were reviewed, with the notation of the decrease still due to the COVID-produced the decrease in special details. 4. Other Activities Report – The Chief pointed out the continued low Service Request Calls with the exception being the Mental Health reports. 5. SPCA Report – The SPCA report was reviewed, noting 25 complaints year-to-date and 2 after-hours calls. 6. Parking Tickets - Number of tickets continue to be lower than last year’s monthly count. 8. Detective Bureau Cases – There were a variety of crimes investigated by the Detective Bureau for the month and the Chief noted 13 pistol permit applications for the month. OLD BUSINESS PERSONNEL – The Chief updated the Commission on the current personnel status within the Department; reviewing who has left the department via retirement or transfer. Ptl. William Bernheim, Mrs. Diane Ferri, Ptl. Bradley Becker are the retirees; Ptl. Trevor Wenz transferred to 1|Page Onondaga County; and Mrs. Nancy Sutliff is scheduled to retire, effective 2/27 with her last work day scheduled as 2/26. Ptl. Paige Kinner commenced employment on 2/4 and will be attending Basic Academy on 3/29. Currently, background investigations are being conducted on four (4) additional candidates, with the expectation of sending them to the Basic Academy in March also. The Common Council approved a temporary roster increase to enable the Chief to hire a new employee to send to the Basic Academy. Two females have been hired, necessitating the construction of a second female locker room. NEW BUSINESS A. AWARDS – The Chief noted, that due to COVID issues, the annual Awards ceremony has been delayed. An abbreviated ceremony with recognition to a few people for incidents occurring in the past year will be held on March 5, 2021 at noon, dependent upon the availability of the awardees. Additionally, the Police Officer of the Year award will be announced at the ceremony. The Commissioners are invited to attend. B. COMMUNITY SURVEY RESULTS – The Chief commented on the recently published results of the Community Survey, stating its part in the E.O. 203 due to be forwarded to Governor Cuomo’s office as of April 1. Overall, the response was positive with the notation to initiate additional conversation about emotionally disturbed persons. C. EO 203 – The Chief apprised the Commission regarding the results and response to the Governor’s Executive Order, in that they are in the final stages. The Mayor shared some ideas with the Common Council and they will be settling on a format to forward to the Governor. OTHER BUSINESS A. COMMENDATION, APPRECIATION, CORRESPONDENCE REPORT - 1. Ms. Wendy Huff sent an email to the department address in an effort to find and contact her brother. Lt. Guerrera followed up, found her brother and forwarded his information to Ms. Huff, whereupon she thanked him profusely. 2. Mrs. Nancy Sutliff forwarded a letter of intention to retire to the Mayor, while copying the Chief. The Chief responded to her letter. 3. Mr. Matthew Maniaci sent a thank you card to D/C Sandy and Lt. Guerrera, thanking them for the interview. 4. Mr. Jacob Brewster sent a letter to D/C Sandy and Lt Guerrera thanking them for the opportunity to interview for the open police officer position. 5. The NYS Division of Criminal Justice Services (DCJS) sent a letter confirming the Department meets eligibility requirements as set forth by the USDOJ for discretionary federal grants. The Chief responded accordingly. 6. Lt. Todd Calhoun, Beaufort County Sheriff’s Office – and former CPD employee – sent an email of congratulations to Chief Catalano for his upcoming retirement. 7. Girl Scout Troop 30307 sent a hand-drawn thank you note to D/C Sandy for his purchase of Girl Scout cookies. 2|Page B. COMMISSIONER COMMENTS – 1. In response to the Mayor’s email regarding upcoming Police Chief Interviews, Commissioner Sponaugle announced he will be having cataract surgery, while apprising the commission of those dates in anticipation of scheduling the interviews accordingly. Conversation ensued regarding this new interview process as arranged by the mayor. 2. The Chief noted with his retirement from the department date of March 19, this has been his last Police Commission meeting, while stating it has been his pleasure to work with the commissioners. ADJOURNMENT With no further business to discuss, on the motion of Comm. Starr, Second by Comm. Sponaugle, the meeting was adjourned at 10:50 AM. Respectfully submitted, Diane L. Ferri Part Time Confidential Secretary 3|Page