District Attorney Hoovler Announces Roundtables with School Superintendents and PBA Representatives

June 7, 2017

Keeping the District Attorney’s Office Connected to Important Segments
Of Law Enforcement and Of Our Communities

Orange County District Attorney David M. Hoovler on June 7, 2017, announced meetings that have recently been held between the District Attorney, his staff, and two groups that are important in the fight against crime in our communities.

On May 16, 2017, the District Attorney’s Community Affairs Unit hosted a luncheon with Orange County’s school superintendents, at the Holiday Inn on Crystal Run Road in the Town of Wallkill. This year represents the third time that the District Attorney and his staff have met with school superintendents as a group, in addition to numerous individual meetings. Eleven of the County’s superintendents attended the luncheon. Among the topics discussed were the County’s Social Host Law; the need for vigilance against underage drinking and drug use during spring events, such as proms and graduations; the opiate epidemic gripping the region and the nation; the recently-enacted legislation to “Raise the Age” of criminal responsibility from 16 to 18; Orange County’s new “Tobacco 21” legislation; and the presentations of the Uncommon Athlete that the District Attorney will be sponsoring in the fall.

On May 24, 2017, the District Attorney and his Community Affairs Unit met in Goshen at the Orange County Emergency Services Center with representatives from several of the County’s Policemen’s Benevolent Associations (PBAs). District Attorney Hoovler and his staff have now met with PBA representatives four times, annually since the District Attorney took office. Among the topics discussed at the meeting were recent state legislation requiring the videotaping of statements made by suspects in some serious felony cases; recent legislation permitting the prosecution at trial to introduce in evidence procedures where a witness has identified a suspect in a photograph; the recent “Raise the Age” legislation; the opiate epidemic; and the District Attorney’s and New York State’s policies on police shootings and assaults on police officers.

“Since before I took office,” said District Attorney Hoovler, “I have made it my mission to better connect the District Attorney’s Office with our communities, in an effort to reach out to people who might be able to help us solve issues leading to crime. School superintendents and rank-and-file police officers, among many others, are important people for my office to connect with. Our children are our future, and we win if we can assist schools to impress on children the need to be law-abiding citizens, or if schools can assist us in identifying issues that lead to crime and that we can solve. In addition, just as we have made efforts to enhance our connection to police administrators, we have reached out to rank-and-file police officers, those on the street, who have daily contact with problems that lead to crime. By forging lasting relationships between our schools and our police, I hope to continue the outreach efforts of this office, as we all strive to prevent crime and to appropriately punish those who commit it.”

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