Advocates want New York Governor Andrew Cuomo to reject Nassau County’s submission for state-mandated police reform after the Attorney General’s office criticized the plan. Cuomo’s office has so far withheld comment.
The Long Island Advocates for Police Accountability group renewed calls to withhold funding from Nassau County Police after state Attorney General Letitia James said the department lacked formal oversight.
The governor’s office is still reviewing plans, but Cuomo has said in the past that so long as police departments followed the legislative process as prescribed by the state-mandated reform process it would not lose funding.
“We are interested in what the governor’s office does in terms of a real evaluation of whether or not reform after the death of George Floyd really has been provided through the Nassau plan,” said Fred Brewington, a civil rights lawyer and part of the police reform group.
Cuomo’s executive order required police departments to involve community stakeholders with drafting of the plan. Brewington’s group was involved until they quit in protest because Nassau County Police were largely ignoring their suggestions.