It’s been a turbulent couple of years for the Saugerties Police Department, with allegations of misconduct against multiple former officers and the acrimonious retirement of the former chief. Town officials say the police department has worked hard to improve its reputation in the community. They believe what the police have been doing is working.
“Policing inherently comes with a measure of skepticism,” said town supervisor Fred Costello. “It can be challenging. When things are going well, you can do that, but when things like this happen you can lose the people’s confidence.”
“Things like this” include the arrest last month of part-time Saugerties police officer Sydney Mills, charged with multiple felony sex offenses, including rape, sexual abuse, and engaging in sexual conduct with a child.
The allegations cover several months during 2022 and are related to a single teenage girl. According to the Ulster County district attorney’s office, Mills sexually abused the girl between April and November 2022, while he was still employed full-time by the department. The indictment accuses Mills of engaging in both oral and vaginal sexual conduct with the girl, who was between 14 and 15 at the time.
Mills was indicted by a grand jury on two felony counts of third-degree rape of a person incapable of consent, one felony count of second-degree criminal sex act on a victim under the age of 15, one felony count of criminal sex act on a victim under the age of 17 years by someone over the age of 21, and one misdemeanor count of third-degree sexual abuse. He pleaded not guilty to the charges.
In 2007, Mills was named in a federal civil lawsuit that alleged he helped another village officer, Tyrone Chrisjohn, order a 17-year-old girl into the back of a patrol car, where Chrisjohn allegedly attempted to grope her. Mills was mentioned in the complaint but not named as a defendant.
Chrisjohn was arrested in 2006 after a New York State Police investigation into allegations that he had sexual contact with a 14-year-old and a 16-year-old while on duty in 2004, and that he exposed himself to and tried to grope a 17-year-old in 2003. He faced numerous charges including rape, attempted sexual abuse, attempted forcible touching, and official misconduct. Chrisjohn was acquitted in 2007 following a one-day jury trial in Ulster County court. The civil lawsuit against him was later dismissed by agreement of all parties.
In another case, former officer Dion Johnson accepted a plea deal in 2024 after facing eleven charges related to burglary, sexual abuse, and workplace harassment. That case led to scrutiny of the department’s internal handling of allegations of misconduct and the 2023 retirement of former chief Joseph Sinagra.
Building on a foundation
In announcing its arrest of Mills, the Saugerties police affirmed their commitment to transparency and accountability.
“We understand that public trust is essential for our agency’s effectiveness, and we will continue to work towards maintaining that trust,” read the SPD statement. “We want to assure the community that we take these allegations seriously and will cooperate fully with the investigation. We are dedicated to providing a safe and secure environment for our citizens, and we will not tolerate any behavior that compromises the trust our community deserves.”
Costello lauded current chief Kenneth Swart’s outreach push with helping the department move forward.
“The first step is to do the right thing for the right reason,” Swart said. “I’m talking to the public and listening to their complaints. It doesn’t mean that everyone is going to agree with every action, it means doing the best you can. After that, it’s about trying to make our officers approachable. We’ve been attending community events and many of the officers have been putting themselves out there, engaging the community. I think it’s important for the community to know that police officers are members just like them.”
Costello also credited Sinagra’s immediate replacement, interim chief Lou Barbaria, and Barbaria’s predecessor, chief Robert Nuzzo with establishing that stability.
Barbaria was always intended to serve as interim chief, but Nuzzo’s eight-month tenure was unexpected. His resignation came after the state Department of Civil Service notified the town that a waiver from pension requirements would be much lower than the six months originally sought. Nuzzo, a retired state police lieutenant colonel, retired rather than risk losing his pension.
“I’d like to thank retired chief Barbaria for coming back and for chief Nuzzo for his time and dedication during his tenure,” Swart said. “Both of them have the experience and used their experience to help the department start down the path of stabilization and rebuilding.”
Despite their short time steering the ship, Costello said both Barbaria and Nuzzo left their mark on the SPD, and Swart has continued in that direction.
“He has certainly built on that foundation,” Costello said, pointing to recent successful recruitment efforts. “These are gifted young folks that are working for us now.”
Costello cited as examples of the police and the rest of town government working well together the July 4 Sawyer Motors Car Show and the upcoming Hudson Valley Garlic Festival.
“In the summer and fall we have a really active tourist population,” Costello said. “The car show can’t be the success it is, or the Fourth of July [celebration] or the garlic festival without the police playing their important role in making sure those events go well.”
“We expect more”
Costello credited the SPD’s involvement in bringing to light the cases against Mills and former high school wrestling coach and custodian Reid Kappler. At least one of the students who made the allegations did so through officer Travis Winchell, who until recently was the school resource Officer (SRO) at the high school.
“He did exactly what we expect of law enforcement,” Costello said. “He listened, he acted, and he reported it. He provided a transparent and prompt response… One of the young folks involved had the confidence to go to Travis to have a difficult conversation is an acknowledgement of his value and the trust those folks put in him.”
Winchell was reassigned following an unspecified disciplinary incident before the end of the 2024-25 school year, but parents have championed his return, with a petition on change.org signed by over 800 people. As of press time, the school system has not named the SRO for the 2025-26 school year.
Costello conceded that the issues surrounding the local police over the past few years have been “uncomfortable and embarrassing,” but he said that recent improvements had been legitimate.
“We expect more from our people, and if we don’t perform [at] that level we’re going to address it, no matter how uncomfortable it may be,” he said. “I think the foundations of the department are stable and [that] they have been built by our community’s demand for trustworthy police services.”
Swart declined comment on the ongoing Mills investigation but said the department had responded quickly to the allegations and has been working with the district attorney’s office.
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