Rockland Lawmakers Again Weigh in on Clarkstown Police Chief Suspension

From the Rockland County Legislature:

Rockland County Legislators are calling upon the Clarkstown Town Board to formally dismiss all charges leveled against Michael Sullivan and to immediately reinstate him as Clarkstown Police Chief.

In a bipartisan action, legislators voted 10-5 Tuesday to adopt the resolution which was first approved by the its Public Safety Committee on Aug. 30.

“I don’t usually look for fights, but my blood boils if I think an injustice is taking place and that’s what I think is happening here,” Legislator Harriet Cornell (D-West Nyack) said. “Many of us in the County Legislature have joined together to express confidence in the integrity and professionalism of Clarkstown Police Chief Michael Sullivan. We believe the reasons given for his suspension were unwarranted and that he should be reinstated.

“What had started out as an over-the-top response for the chief’s delay over a weekend before suspending a sergeant at the bidding of the town supervisor has turned into a very sad and demoralizing spectacle,” Cornell said.

Some lawmakers noted that in the absence of a countywide police force, towns and villages coordinate efforts with the Rockland County Sheriff and District Attorney, so if there is an issue that roils one town, it also affects Rockland’s four other towns and multiple villages.

“Our law enforcement agencies work together to prevent crimes, to solve crimes and to keep each of us safe no matter their town or village boundary,” said Legislature Chairman Alden H. Wolfe (D-Montebello). “It is thanks to that strategy that we live in a safe county at a time when safety is regularly in the minds of the public.”

Legislator Aney Paul (D-Nanuet) said that Clarkstown enjoys a reputation of one of the safest towns in the nation.

“This is due in good part to the efforts of Chief Sullivan and the other officers in the Clarkstown Police Department,” Paul said. ‘He’s been doing his best to take care of our safety since becoming a police officer more than three decades ago. He has a track record and it is a good one.”

Legislator Ilan Schoenberger (D-Wesley Hills) said legislators should take a stand in favor of Sullivan, whose name is being dragged through the mud for “political reasons.”

“We should be sending a message that decent, hard-working, lifelong police officers who commit themselves to the betterment of not just Clarkstown, but the whole county, should not become the victim of internal political politics,” Schoenberger said.

Legislators voting in favor of the resolution: Cornell, Paul, Wolfe, Schoenberger, Toney Earl (D-Hillcrest), Michael Grant D-Garnerville), Doug Jobson (R-Stony Point), Nancy Low-Hogan (D-South Nyack), Phil Soskin (D-Monsey), and Aron Wieder (D-Spring Valley).

Legislators voting against the resolution: Christopher Carey (R-Bardonia), Charles Falciglia (R-Suffern), Lon Hofstein (R-New City), Patrick Moroney (R-Pearl River) and Laurie Santulli (R-Congers).

Legislator Vincent D. Tyer (D-Pearl River) was excused from the meeting early.

Legislator Jay Hood Jr. (D-Haverstraw) was absent.

A copy of the resolution will be sent to Clarkstown Town Supervisor George Hoehmann and the rest of the Town Board, Rockland County District Attorney Thomas Zugibe, New York State Attorney General Eric Schneiderman, the Clarkstown Police Benevolent Association and the Police Chief’s Association of Rockland County.

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PHOTO: Michael Sullivan/ Town of Clarkstown