POUGHKEEPSIE – Months after the City of Poughkeepsie experienced a steady rise in violent crime, the city’s common council held a meeting on Wednesday to address it. Council Chairperson Sarah Salem called the multi-faceted gathering “A Special Meeting on Gun Violence, Homelessness, and Crime in the City of Poughkeepsie.”
The meeting brought together Poughkeepsie police administration, members of SNUG leadership, Hudson River Housing, Mental Health of America Dutchess County, and Dutchess County Department of Behavioral and Community Health. A last-minute addition to the agenda by Salem was Brian Robinson, CEO of Equitable Future, Inc, a staunch critic of the City of Poughkeepsie Police.
Members of the public gathered in the auditorium of ChangePoint Church and heard Salem say that “An increase in crime could affect homelessness and vice-versa,” before addressing the violence, saying “We’ve had an incredible increase in violent crime and gun violence and it’s incredibly complex.”
Most presenters stood before the audience and gave a pitch on the services they offer, and SNUG offered insight into their attempts to reduce gun crimes in Poughkeepsie.
Members of the audience sat quietly during the presentations.
Poughkeepsie Police Chief Tom Pape received a rousing round of applause from community members by taking his time to say, “We could stand here and give you statistics on crime, but we’re here to listen to you and your concerns,” before deferring to the next speaker.
Many in the audience were frustrated by the way the meeting was formatted and Mayor Rob Rolison responded to the critics after the meeting. “My understanding is that the Chairperson Sarah Salem did not speak with the presenters prior to this meeting and that was a major misstep in coordinating the desires of what was supposed to be accomplished.” Asked how he plans to alleviate the frustration of city residents, Rolison also said, “The comments and concerns of the attendees were heard and city government and our partners and we will continue to address these very challenging issues. We will be having further discussions with our community to work on this together.”
Community activist Diamond Marie attended the meeting with her young daughter. “The meeting highlighted the overextended and exacerbated work of community organizations like SNUG and Hudson River Housing and demonstrated the lack of very much needed community engagement from the city of Poughkeepsie residents.” She admonished her neighbors. “There is power in numbers and last night we lacked greatly. If I could tell my neighbors anything it would be to get involved and be the change you seek.”
Poughkeepsie’s Coach Roy Watterson, the organizer of the successful Youth Football Camp, was not impressed with Salem’s attempt to address the violence by having a conference. “The meeting wasn’t good at all. They (the council) do this all the time by trying to make the police look like they are the bad guys. Our police are doing tremendous work without Salem’s help.” He took further issue with Salem and the chair’s DWI arrest that has yet to be prosecuted. The council chair is accused of DWI after a personal injury auto accident on February 26, 2020. Salem is requesting a jury trial on the charges and the courts have not resumed trials. “She’s been charged with two DWIs – one got reduced and this one, where she injured a young black woman, hasn’t gone anywhere.” Salem had an August 25 city court appearance. The case was adjourned again, this time until September 22, in an effort to schedule a jury trial, according to the Dutchess County DA’s office.
