Monroe County Association

of
Chiefs of Police
P.O Box 1652
Fairport, New York 14450

June 17, 2020

In response to the Governors Executive Order issued on June
12, 2020, requiring every police agency in New York to
implement Police Reform locally; it is important for residents in
Monroe County to understand that many of the outlined
requirements are already being met.

In 1989 New York State created the Police Accreditation

Program; a program that sets “best practices” for managing a
Police Department. There are presently one hundred nineteen
(119) categories of policies and procedures the accreditation
program addresses: From topics like Use of Force, Firearms
Discharge, Budgeting Responsibility, Hiring Practices, Arrest
Procedures, Citizen Complaints to having a Community Mission
Statement. This is a VOLUNTARY Program. Once an agency
meets the standards set forth, they are audited every two years
to ensure the policies are in fact being followed and every 5th
year, there is a three (3) day on site review assessment. These
standards are very comprehensive and exhaustive.

In 1992 the Gates Police Department, after two (2) years of

internal review and changes to our department’s operation,

Association Officers:
President Vice President Secretary Treasurer
Chief James VanBrederode Chief Christopher Mears Chief Mark Cuzzupoli Chief Steve Clancy
585-247-2262 585-617-6131 585-637-1024 585-586-4399
Members:
Chief David Catholdi Chief Alan Laird Chief Sam Farina
Chief LaRon Singletary Chief Joseph Rieger Chief Patrick Phelan
became Accredited by the New York State Division of Criminal
Justice Services. In 2004, Monroe County Law Enforcement
made history when all eleven (11) police agencies reached the
New York State Accreditation standards. We were the first
County in the State of New York where every local law
enforcement agency was fully accredited. To this day, we still
hold this honor. Of the five hundred (500) plus agencies in New
York, only approximately one hundred fifty (150) are accredited
by the State of New York. Additionally, The Monroe County
Sheriff’s Office and the Rochester Police Department went on to
receive a National Accreditation known as CALEA (Commission
on Accreditation for Law Enforcement Agencies). There are
approximately only eight hundred (800) agencies across the
Country that have met the CALEA Accreditation Standards. The
Rochester Police, back in the early 1990’s, was the first agency
in the State of New York to receive such accreditation.

It is important that our residents know, that the Law Enforcement

Agencies in Monroe County, have always been ahead of the
curve in training and best practices. As we review the
Governor’s Executive Order, many of these requirements are
already being met.

The verbal scolding by the Governor last Friday regarding Law

Enforcement in New York needs to be toned back. It is unfair to
paint every agency with the same brush or to create a perception
that all Law Enforcement is not meeting community needs.
There have been absolutely no requests here in Gates to defund
the Police or to remove our Officer’s from the schools. Our local
departments are following the “Best Practices” established by
Albany. Additionally, as with the sweeping changes of Bail
Reform, there has been no open dialogue or input from L.E.,
decisions are being made by a handful of individuals. This is
Association Officers:
President Vice President Secretary Treasurer
Chief James VanBrederode Chief Christopher Mears Chief Mark Cuzzupoli Chief Steve Clancy
585-247-2262 585-617-6131 585-637-1024 585-586-4399
Members:
Chief David Catholdi Chief Alan Laird Chief Sam Farina
Chief LaRon Singletary Chief Joseph Rieger Chief Patrick Phelan
one of the obstacles when you have a “one political party” rule
situation. Democracy is missing.

All of your local Police Chiefs spend countless hours working on

building relationships with our residents and developing
community policing efforts. In fact, the majority of our work day
is spent on building community bridges. We take our
responsibilities very seriously. We ask that the Rochester
Community continue to judge us with an impartial lens.

Going forward, the Governor should be advocating that every

police department in New York be accredited. This seems like a
more sweeping and comprehensive goal.

In closing…….When we get things wrong, we take responsibility.

Likewise, when we get things right, we would appreciate the
acknowledgment by our political leaders.

Chief VanBrederode - President

NYS Accreditation Program (Taken from the Web Site)

Introduction

Accreditation is a progressive and contemporary way of helping police agencies evaluate

and improve their overall performance. It provides formal recognition that an organization
meets or exceeds general expectations of quality in the field. Accreditation acknowledges
the implementation of policies that are conceptually sound and operationally effective.
The New York State program became operational in 1989 and encompasses four principle
goals:

1. To increase the effectiveness and efficiency of law enforcement agencies utilizing

existing personnel, equipment and facilities to the extent possible;

Association Officers:
President Vice President Secretary Treasurer
Chief James VanBrederode Chief Christopher Mears Chief Mark Cuzzupoli Chief Steve Clancy
585-247-2262 585-617-6131 585-637-1024 585-586-4399
Members:
Chief David Catholdi Chief Alan Laird Chief Sam Farina
Chief LaRon Singletary Chief Joseph Rieger Chief Patrick Phelan
2. To promote increased cooperation and coordination among law enforcement
agencies and other agencies of the criminal justice services;
3. To ensure the appropriate training of law enforcement personnel; and
4. To promote public confidence in law enforcement agencies.

Association Officers:
President Vice President Secretary Treasurer
Chief James VanBrederode Chief Christopher Mears Chief Mark Cuzzupoli Chief Steve Clancy
585-247-2262 585-617-6131 585-637-1024 585-586-4399
Members:
Chief David Catholdi Chief Alan Laird Chief Sam Farina
Chief LaRon Singletary Chief Joseph Rieger Chief Patrick Phelan