The Center for Law and Justice in Albany has released its "report card" on Police Chief Steven Krokoff's performance over the past three years as head of the Albany Police
"Pathway to Change: African Americans and Community Policing in Action" examines African-American perception of how police interact with people. It focuses on the progress Albany Police Chief Steven Krokoff has made when it comes to repairing what the report calls "decades of racial tensions" neighborhoods experienced under several of his predecessors via community policing.
Community activist Alice Green is executive director of The Center for Law and Justice. Green says the report gave citizens a unique opportunity to assess Chief Krokoff's performance when it comes to the concept of effective community policing.
But Green adds that many people on the street say they continue to feel disrespected and "treated differently" by police officers. Green encourages "community unity". The report makes eight recommendations. Attempts to reach Chief Krokoff were unsuccessful.
Green says she talked with Chief Krokoff about the so-called "Ida Yarborough" incident: The Albany Police Department was heavily criticized after pictures and complaints about what was described as a "training exercise" went viral on Facebook.
Albany mayoral candidate Jesse Calhoun, a Republican inspired to run after the training exercise incident, weighed in, praising Albany County District Attorney David Soares and applauding the report.(You can read it HERE).
However, not everyone is applauding Soares: the Times Union reports the head of the Albany NAACP accused the D.A. of turning his back on the black community. Bernard Bryan did not respond to a request for comment.
Alice Green says while there are people who commit crimes, it doesn't mean the entire community is engaged in criminal activity, and people in inner cities or diverse neighborhoods would just like to be treated like everyone else.
