As she presided over the graduation of 238 new members of the New York State Police, Gov. Kathy Hochul urged them to be part of an effort to restore trust.
“There’s a lot of mistrust between communities and law enforcement,” he said. “You are the individuals who will break down these barriers.”
Her appearance at the graduation ceremony comes more than a month after Hochul was able to get much of what she wanted on what has been a hot political issue for her and her fellow Democrats in New York. Public safety has been a top issue for voters along with the cost of living, and the issue dominated the gubernatorial campaign last year.
In May, state lawmakers and Hochul agreed to a $229 billion budget that included adding more than $66 million to increase the number of classes at the state police academy and increase the number of troopers involved in investigations of serious crimes.
There was also more money to implement changes to discovery law, as well as a reduction in the state’s controversial cashless bail to give judges more discretion in some criminal cases.
Hochul had previously won changes to the budget the year before the bond bill, but the issue remained an intense focus for Republicans in 2022.
This year, Hochul will consider whether to sign a bill to automatically seal about 2 million criminal records, with sex crimes and felonies excluded.
