“We do need to prudently cut back in overstaffed and overfunded departments and, as I have point ed out, the County jail is the prime example.”-County Legislator Damon Maher
“To bring this up in the midst of a pandemic could be kindly called short sighted at best. Does Legislator Maher even care about the health and safety of the inmate population, correctional, or civilian staff?” -Neil Pellone, West. COBA
By Dan Murphy
Rising newspapers recently received a letter to the editor from Neil Pellone, President of the Westchester Corrections Officers Benevolent Association, (COBA), asking for Hazzard Pay for his members.
In the letter on pg 6, Pellone criticizes County Legislator Damon Maher for his suggestions, in this budget cycle and in the past, to review and evaluate the number of inmates at the Westchester County Jail in Valhalla and the number of corrections officers employed at the same.
The inmate population at the Westchester County Jail has dropped by 38% in two years, according to data from the county’s Comprehensive Annual Financial Review (CARF). Last year, 2019, the average inmate population was 923; this year it was 580, a significant reduction which happened for a number of reasons, including COVID, but also the recent criminal reforms implemented in New York State which have reduced inmate populations, not only here in Westchester but across the state.
In an email to his constituents, Legislator Maher wrote, “Granted the pandemic had an effect in reducing incarcerations, but the numbers had already trended downward on the basis of the long downward trend in the crime rate in our local municipalities, Raise the Age legislation of two years ago with respect to 16 and 17 year-olds, bail reform and reduced prosecution of low level drug offenses, the latter two of which developments had already been largely foreshadowed by policies the Westchester DA’s office in advance of actual legislation, and were calculable based on historic demographics at the jail,” said Maher, who highlighted a recent audit report by the Ulster County NY which evaluated lower prison populations in their jail and resulted in Ulster County petitioning NY State to reduce minimum requirements of corrections officers in state prisons.
Maher brought up the report at a recent County Budget committee meaning, as part of a larger conversation that he wants to have about the county budget and its priorities. “And in these difficult times it is good to keep property taxes flat for low- and middle-income homeowners but we still need to discuss eventual adoption of a fairer tax structure, asking more of those with higher incomes and high-end properties who have enjoyed such great success due in part to things that Government makes possible,” said Maher.
“Meanwhile, especially during this pandemic, it is all the more important to make long-term investments in human capital, by better funding daycare and other early childhood education, helping to stave off the predicted tsunami of evictions, and filling budgeted positions left vacant in the recent buy-out plan for social service and mental health employees. We shouldn’t be balancing the budget by failing to fill positions set up to help people now truly in need, and we should do better by underfunded nonprofit organizations that partner with government to help the most vulnerable.”
“Whether or not we get the additional State or federal aid we so fervently wish for, we do need to prudently cut back in overstaffed and overfunded departments and, as I have pointed out, the County jail is the prime example. In this past year we have come close to having a two-to-one ratio of Corrections staff to inmates, while a perfectly good staffing level would appear to be a two- or three-to-one level in the other direction; that is, inmates to staff. There has been a steady reduction in the inmate population over the past five years at least, with no reduction in staffing levels (as funding went up) and no pro rata downward adjustment, that I can find in the budget lines, on contracts with outside vendors for medical and food services,” stated Maher.
Maher’s suggestions have been opposed by supporters of law enforcement. Below is Neil Pellone’s letter on behalf of his corrections officers.
COVID and Corrections
By Neil Pellone, President, Westchester C.O.B.A.
Earlier this year I had written an Op-Ed entitled “A new world of public safety is upon us.” Little did I realize what would be upon us; this initial Op-Ed focused on the changes in bail reform, these changes lowered the jail population significantly. This reduction in population brought on the knee jerk reaction to question minimum staffing levels from certain Westchester County Legislators.
No one could have predicted the life altering changes that would come in March and April of 2020. Since the start of this COVID-19 pandemic Westchester COBA has continued to work together with the Department, the County Executive; his team, and the Department of Health to implement safety measures, ensure the use of PPE, and minimize the spread of this disease so we can keep our officers, their families, and the inmate population as safe as possible. Some of these additional safety measures include increasing cleaning crews to decontaminate, social distancing the inmate population, and altering new admission protocols and housing locations to minimize the introduction and spread of this highly contagious disease into the petri-dish environment known as jail.
As recent as October, 2020, County Legislator Damon Maher, during a Budget Committee-Capital Projects meeting, brought up an audit report that was done recently in Ulster County to evaluate the lower population number and petition the state to reduce requirements. Legislator Maher, as he has done in the past, has harped on lowering the minimum staffing standards, with his main focus of the inquiries solely on saving money.
To bring this up in the midst of a pandemic could be kindly called short sighted at best. Does Legislator Maher, and any of the other legislators asking for decreased staffing levels, even care about the health and safety of the inmate population, correctional, or civilian staff? While many other correctional facilities have had fatalities to all of the aforementioned staff and population, due to the safety measures based upon the current staffing levels, fortunately we have not. COVID-19 has negatively affected not only my members but their loved ones as well.
Our children are learning from laptops in make shift “living room classrooms” while many of us are being forced to work overtime and safely protect the jail.As recent as October 15th, 2020, the federal government ended an agreement with the Westchester County Jail, stating that the jail had met conditions to improve the treatment of inmates. In a public statement the officers of the Westchester County Jail were commended along with Commissioner Joseph K. Spano and his staff by County Executive George Latimer “No one is forgotten in our County, and this work is just more proof,” Latimer said in a statement.
On November 5, 2020, Commissioner Spano stated after the department earned its fifth re-accreditation. “The successful ACA reaccreditation audit combined with the Department’s other unique national certifications is part of what contributes to our reputation as a national leader in the correctional space-something we are very proud of.”
“These accolades are great to hear, but as the backbone of the Westchester County Jail our Corrections Officers deserve hazard pay! We have worked through COVID, contracted COVID, and returned back to work from COVID. We put our safety and that of our families at risk on a daily basis. We continue to work through these unique challenges in an enclosed jail setting.
Despite these risks, as essential employees, Westchester County Correction Officers proudly remain on the front lines of this battle, working in close quarters, continuing to ensure public safety on a 24/7 basis,” end of Pellone’s letter.
Many see the arguments from Maher and Pellone as the beginning of a discussion about defunding the police on one side, and support for law enforcement on the other side.
“The new laws in New York State are working and our prison populations in our state are declining greatly,” said Patricia Kenny, a Westchester democrat. “Legislator Maher is now taking the next logical step, by proposing that we use our tax dollars for other means than incarceration. I applaud his efforts.”
County Executive George Latimer’s proposed county budget for 2021 shows that 21 vacant positions in the correction department will be subtracted from their current level of 877. Maher has also made the following suggestions,
“By my calculations, we could forgo the planned Academy class this coming year, could have continuing attrition and a new buy-out proposal (like in Social Services, Mental Health and Public Health earlier this year), saving enough money to help struggling early childhood education/day care places and parents, and still have enough to cut the county property tax by about $4M. Add that to the County Executive’s $1M cut and you have $5M, which is almost a full percentage point cut.”
We find Legislator Maher’s suggestions, and that is all that they are at this point, at the least worthy of discussion. As another progressive Westchester democrat told us, “We have a 16-1 supermajority on the county board. Let’s take that supermajority out for a ride and test it. Many democrats, and all politicians, are afraid to stand up to the unions. At least one isn’t.”
Other Westchester residents support law enforcement and are concerned that the safety of both officers and inmates could be at risk. “I don’t want Damon Maher determining how many corrections officers we need for how many inmates we may have at the time,” said Donald Hawkins. “What about the mentally ill inmates, who require more than one officer to keep safe? Aren’t there other parts of the county budget where we can look to cut before we cut corrections officers risking their lives in our country jail? This is just the first step, next come cuts to the Westchester County Police and then how about cuts to the New Rochelle Police, where Legislator Maher lives?”
