“Now that I have viewed the video footage of Tyre Nichols’ murder at the hands of five Memphis police officers, I struggle with how to both express my outrage while also assure our community that we are committed to doing the work to prevent this type of brutality from occurring in New Paltz. We unequivocally condemn the treatment and murder of Tyre Nichols; these actions are the antithesis of everything the men and women of this agency stand for.
In the wake of George Floyd’s murder, we pledged to be instruments of change and to treat our community with fairness, compassion and empathy. Towards that endeavor we have implemented many of the recommendations put forward by our Reform and Reinvention Committee, we have established community outreach programs and continuously review policy and training to ensure we are following best practices. While we have taken these and other steps to uphold that pledge, the deplorable actions of these officers in Memphis are a stark reminder of the collective work that remains to maintain the trust and confidence of the community we serve.
We stand ready to listen to our community and invite you to attend a special session of our Conversations with the Police on Wednesday, February 1st at 7:00pm at the New Paltz Police Department,” says New Paltz Chief of Police Robert Lucchesi.