Johnson City Police Reform Plan Has Some Surprises

A couple more police reform plans are nearing completion in the region.

On the heels of Binghamton placing its final draft up for review prior to a public hearing and vote later this month, Johnson City says its Police Reform and Reinvention Collaborative Plan can be reviewed now at jcnypd.org/police-reform and comment through March 22^nd.

Johnson City’s 32-page review found at least one surprising point according to its participating coordinators:  On the issue of the size of the force and its presence, in spite of national cries to defund police and disband departments, more Village residents said they wanted to a see an increase in the number of officers, patrols, foot and bike patrols and overall visibility.

Get our free mobile app

The report, however, points up a huge disparity in the number of minority residents in relation to the makeup of the police force.  The Johnson City Police force is made up of all but two white officers.  One non-white officer is Asian and one is black.  The report says to better reflect the community, the force should ideally have four Asian, four black and 2 Latino/Hispanic officers.  That goal has been difficult to reach given response to civil service exams for police jobs by minorities.

Endicott had a public hearing on its nearly 200-page blueprint March 15 with a deadline for taking a public survey coming March 17.

Police departments in New York State have to have reform plans approved by April 1 or risk losing state funding.