Prominent religious leader opposes defunding the police

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Rev. Jesse Bottoms at the city's 9/11 memorial. Copyright Mid-Hudson News 2022.

POUGHKEEPSIE – Reverend Dr. Jesse Bottoms Jr. has denounced the efforts of the “defund the police” movement.  Reverend Bottoms is the prominent leader of the Beulah Baptist Church and has been serving the Poughkeepsie community since 1977.

While talking to the audience during last Friday’s 9/11 commemoration in Poughkeepsie with the city’s 9/11 memorial of twisted steel from the World Trade Center as a backdrop, Reverend Bottoms said that defunding the police is not an option that will improve the quality of life in the city.

“Defunding the police is not the solution,” he said to a crowd that included many of the city’s police and firefighters.

“Taking money from investigations, taking money from prosecutions, or incarcerations is not the answer,” said Bottoms who stressed the need for more funding for the police.  “Money needs to be found to put on the front end for crime prevention.  Only when crime goes down can the budget be reduced in those other areas.”

He also credited the city’s first responders, saying, “They put their lives on the line for us and I thank God for the city’s police and firefighters.”

The battle between the city’s police department and leaders of the common council has been ongoing.  In 2020 the members of the City of Poughkeepsie PBA denounced Council Chair Sarah Salem with a vote of no confidence and called for her removal citing what they call ” her anti-police agenda.”

The city police feel that Salem is biased against police due in part to her criminal behavior including striking a police officer and two DWI arrests.  At the time of the 2020 vote of no confidence, PBA Vice-president, Detective Chris Libolt (now retired) said, “Violent crime is on the rise in Poughkeepsie but Salem and Councilmember Evan Menist have priorities that focus on defunding the police, passing the Right to Know Act and the formation of a Civilian Review Board” rather than address the alarming rise in crime, adding that the actions are taken “Without any dialog with the PBA or the Police Department command staff.”  The PBA added, “Oversight of the police is more valuable to them (Salem and Menist) than preserving the lives and well-being of those being victimized in the streets.”




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