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Albany Tear Gas Ban On Hold

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The Albany Common Council has put a law that would ban police from using tear gas and rubber bullets on hold.

Councilors backed away from a vote Monday night on Local Law C, agreeing it needs more discussion and unspecified "modifications."

9th Ward Common Councilor Judy Doesschate originally introduced the measure. A show of hands sealed its fate, for now.

"It's an exercise in futility if I put it up for a vote, and then there's a motion to table, which would be in order, and um, so, two-thirds, eight people who would vote that way, I'm not gonna take us through that exercise."

15th ward Councilor Tom Hoey:

"I know we got a lot of work to do. Very disappointed, but there's always tomorrow."

A controversial proposed amendment would allow police to use tear gas in a situation determined to be a riot.

With a veto looming, Mayor Kathy Sheehan said Friday she supports restricted use of tear gas and rubber bullets.

The virtual meeting garnered more than 1,300 viewer comments on Facebook.

Dave Lucas is WAMC’s Capital Region Bureau Chief. Born and raised in Albany, he’s been involved in nearly every aspect of local radio since 1981. Before joining WAMC, Dave was a reporter and anchor at WGY in Schenectady. Prior to that he hosted talk shows on WYJB and WROW, including the 1999 series of overnight radio broadcasts tracking the JonBenet Ramsey murder case with a cast of callers and characters from all over the world via the internet. In 2012, Dave received a Communicator Award of Distinction for his WAMC news story "Fail: The NYS Flood Panel," which explores whether the damage from Hurricane Irene and Tropical Storm Lee could have been prevented or at least curbed. Dave began his radio career as a “morning personality” at WABY in Albany.
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