NEWBURGH – City Manager Todd Venning unleashed a written attack against a local Hudson Valley tv reporter on Monday, accusing her of conspiring with Orange County David Hoovler to spread a “baseless conspiracy theory fabricated by (a local cable) television presenter that the city is falsifying crime and arrest data.” Mid-Hudson News obtained a video of the actual interview between the reporter and DA Hoovler that disproves the narrative put forth by City Manager Venning.
The tv reporter asked Hoovler if city officials were attempting to cover up crime in the City of Newburgh. Hoovler began by commending the City of Newburgh police, saying, “The police department has done a wonderful job.” The reporter then asked Hoovler if he had an issue with the lack of news releases issued by the City of Newburgh regarding crimes or arrests. Hoovler, the top law enforcement officer in Orange County, said “That’s up to them” on the city choosing to not publicize police activities.
Mid-Hudson News has also encountered difficulty in obtaining information from the city regarding police activity and arrests as well as information regarding fire department activity. Mid-Hudson News has been advised that department heads, including the police and fire chiefs, are not allowed to respond to questions from the media and all inquiries are to be submitted to Venning. Inquiries directed to the city manager frequently go unanswered, requiring reporters to take time to file FOIL requests.
Hoovler, despite the accusations by Venning and the Newburgh City Council, did not claim that the police department was failing to submit the required arrest reports to the state. If a viewer actually listened to the interview, they would learn that the DA is referring to the reporting of arrests to the media and the general public. Hoovler did make the same observation as the one by Mid-Hudson News in that, while Mayor Torrance Harvey is accessible, the city manager is not as engaging.
In Venning’s attack on the reporter, he said, “Legitimate reporters from well-credentialed news organizations don’t always get it right, so it’s not surprising to see a local television personality struggle with basic tenets of professional journalism. But unless that person is acting out of actual malice, it’s obvious even to the most casual observer that Operation Bandemic, which took 28 dangerous criminals off the street, had the intended effect – a dramatic reduction in violent crime. We are grateful to the FBI’s Hudson Valley Safe Streets Task Force for their continued commitment to our community.” Venning continued, “The City will explore its legal options against this presenter and (the cable station) for its reckless disregard of the truth.” The statement regarding the cited arrests was issued by the United States Attorney’s Office with no release issued by the city.
Monday’s attack on Hoovler and the media also included a joint statement from the city council in which they attacked the integrity of District Attorney Hoovler. “Any suggestion that the City of Newburgh Police Department is not in full compliance with all crime reporting requirements under state and federal laws is a deluded, reckless, egregious lie that calls into question District Attorney Hoovler’s integrity, and his continued fitness to serve. The people of Orange County deserve better than a District Attorney using his position to pay back political contributors on his way out of office.”
District Attorney Hoovler told Mid-Hudson News that his statements on reporting were regarding the providing of information to the media and did not imply that information was being withheld during the state-required reporting. He also noted that his office has a system for issuing news releases and credited the police departments in Port Jervis and Middletown for using the media to keep the public informed by issuing such releases. “I want the public to know that the police officers there (Newburgh) are doing a very good job in investigating crimes, to the best they can,” noting that it’s rarely publicized through a press release.
Video of Orange County DA David Hoovler’s actual comments:
