Albany’s Community Police Review Board has called on the Common Council to evaluate if one member’s professional conduct is justification for removal.
A letter drafted by the CPRB’s Program Director Garrett Schaaf outlines concerns regarding the conduct and performance of member Paul Collins-Hackett.
“The membership requested that I draft a document, that document was drafted, distributed to the signers of the document, all of the signers of that document agreed to sign the document and then it was transmitted to the Common Council,” Schaaf wrote.
The letter, submitted Feb. 13, requests that the Common Council “swiftly and definitively exercise its oversight authority as permitted by city law to evaluate if Member Collins-Hackett’s conduct meets the requirements to justify removal for cause.”
The document outlines several concerns regarding Collins-Hackett’s professional conduct, including claims that public remarks he made have called into question “the impartiality and integrity of the CPRB.”
The letter also says Collins-Hackett did not attend or graduate from the Albany Police Department’s Community Police Academy. According to Section 42-340 of the Albany city code, “graduation from the Albany Police Department’s Community Police Academy at the soonest available opportunity shall be required for continued service on the Board.”
Collins-Hackett, who refers to himself as “Batman,” claims that only about 30% of the letter is true. But he says he did not complete the required training.
“The idea that I have not completed the training, which is a requirement, that is true and if anybody says ‘hey, listen, you’re going to be held accountable for not completing the training.” Absolutely, I’d have no problem with that.” Collins said.
According to the letter, Collins-Hackett’s failure to complete the required training makes his position on the board “untenable by law.”
However, Collins-Hackett takes issue with other parts of the letter, including a section claiming he appeared on a podcast “where he bragged about his ability to engage in any conduct without concern for accountability and how he enjoyed sewing chaos across city departments.”
“That’s pretty descriptive colorful language which cannot be justified or explained at all, I don’t sow seeds against city departments, like what are you talking about,” Collins-Hackett said.
The board has been mired in issues since it came under city control last year. In June, Chair Nairobi Vives resigned from the board, citing a conflict of interest brought on by a new professional opportunity.
In October, three members of the board resigned, and the aftermath resulted in the cancellation of its November and December meetings as it sought to regain a quorum. The board regained a quorum and met in January, but then two more members – Michael Logan and Joshua Singletary – resigned in Feb.
All of this has left the board with five members – just enough for a quorum. But, one absence leaves the board without the number of members needed to hold a meeting.
That’s what happened last month when Collins-Hackett could not attend February's meeting, according to reporting by the Times Union.
As for the letter, Collins-Hackett says inaccuracies within it have caused two members to remove their names from the list of signatures.
“There are elements that are true, but there is a lot of stuff that isn’t and for that reason, there is four people who signed on to the letter and two people specifically asked to have their names taken off,” Collins-Hacket said.
Tom Hoey, chair of the Common Council’s Public Safety Committee, confirmed that two members had taken their name off of the letter, but he would not say who.
However, Malik Dare, who originally added his signature to the letter did say he requested that his name be withdrawn. Dare said in a statement: “I believe the most constructive path forward is to allow the Common Council to exercise its duty and independent judgement in this matter.”
Hoey said no action has been taken or is being considered by the council, and “anyone who released this letter to the press is just trying to destroy the CPRB.”
