Updates from NYSTPBA President Tom Mungeer, June 3, 2022

NYSTPBA Newsletter Updates from NYSTPBA President Tom Mungeer Legislative Update – Reactive Governing With the 2022 legislative session wrapping up, as reported last week, all conversations at the Capitol are currently centered around two issues – guns and abortion. Guns As we saw in 2013 in the aftermath of Sandy Hook, once again our elected politicians have taken the path of least resistance and implemented “feel-good,” knee-jerk reactionary legislation to current events instead of well-thought out, commonsense laws that would actually protect the citizens of this state. The key measures include: requiring microstamping of ammunition, prohibiting the sale and purchase of body armor for anyone not in law enforcement or other approved professions, eliminating the grandfathering of large-capacity magazines, making threatening mass harm a crime, expanding the list of people who can file for “Extreme Risk Protection Orders” and raising the purchase age for a semi-automatic rifle from 18 to 21. Microstamping might prove to be a boondoggle (remember COBIS?) as the forensic benefits that microstamping of firearms and ammunition provide over standard ballistics identification methodology has yet to be proven. In addition, the bill itself has the following caveat: it only authorizes the state Division of Criminal Justice Services to determine if microstamping of semi-automatic pistols is technologically feasible, and if it is, to establish a program to implement it. Also, good luck with the “raise the age” piece because a federal appeals court struck down a similar law in California earlier in May, saying that it was unconstitutional. With certainty, this package of bills will: raise the cost of firearms and ammunition to the consumer; generate litigation opposing it; not stop a person determined to inflict harm upon the citizens of New York from going out-of-state and acquiring the items he or she deems necessary to carry out their diabolical plots; add more administrative burdens upon our already stressed State Police resources. I will state I am in favor of one particular item – the body armor piece. In fact, my personal opinion is that it did not go far enough as I believe that anyone outside of law enforcement (and security-related jobs) should not have the ability to possess it. If you pull someone over and they have a Kevlar vest on their front seat, outside some questioning, there is not much that can be done. Some may disagree with me, but I do not remember any private citizen who was spared being a random gun violence statistic because they were wearing their personal body armor. Again, just my opinion. As Socrates once said, “I know only one thing: that I know nothing.” As the legislature has officially gone into session overtime, any updates on issues such as the DROP, a Tier 6 fix, the SP pregnancy/childcare/sick leave and the Deputy/Corrections Time bill will have to wait until they recess. Meanwhile at 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue “A 9 mm bullet blows the lung out of the body," President Joe Biden told reporters on the South Lawn of the White House. "So, the idea of these high-caliber weapons — there’s simply no rational basis for it in terms of self-protection, hunting.” Huh? It’s Going to be a Long, Hot Summer It was recently reported that Lee Zeldin has already spent $8.5 million and Harry Wilson $7.7 million since launching their campaigns – new records for a GOP candidate in the post-Pataki era. Just think about it - $16.2 million spent and both still trail Andrew Giuliani, according to a Unite NY/John Zogby Strategies poll. Giuliani leads 35% to 25% over Zeldin, Rob Astorino follows at 17% and Wilson rounds out the four at 12%. 11% are still undecided. Goodbye AMC, for Now The deadline has passed for former Gov. Andrew Cuomo to mount a gubernatorial bid as the deadline to submit the requisite signatures to run as an independent in the general election has officially passed as of 5 p.m. this past Tuesday. According to a longtime anonymous Cuomo confidante, “Andrew is not running this election cycle. He would only run to win. This is not the cycle for him to run in.” Lucky us. You Reap What You Sow We have all heard the well-known idiom "You reap what you sow.” The people of the state of Washington and members of their law enforcement are now seeing this phrase playing out in real time. From January 1 to May 17 of this year, the Washington State Patrol (WSP) logged 934 instances in which citizens have simply snubbed their noses at the flashing lights behind them and did not stop. The law enacted in May 2021 “in response to the murder of George Floyd in Minneapolis and other high-profile police killings,” that established strict new rules on when police can engage in pursuits, has seriously handcuffed police and the public knows it. According to WSP spokesman Sgt. Darren Wright, “Something’s changed. People are not stopping right now. It’s happening three to five times a shift on some nights and then a couple times a week on day shift.” It is not just a state police problem, Steve Strachan, executive director of the Washington Association of Sheriffs and Police Chiefs added, “It used to be sort of unusual and notable to see someone flee or to see someone simply choose not to stop on a traffic stop. Now it’s becoming incredibly common.” As an example, Strachan referred to a 911 call in which a driver with a suspended license said, “He’s not going to get me. It’s a violation of 1054 [the anti-pursuit law- apparently, he’s also a shithouse lawyer]. He’s not allowed to chase me. You need to tell them to call it off.” This reminds me of another well-known idiom, “The inmates are running the asylum.” Meanwhile in Other Union News A group of California strippers who perform at the Star Garden Topless Dive Bar in North Hollywood is planning to form a union after walking out on the job to protest work conditions. The strippers, who routinely appear at Star Garden Topless Dive Bar in North Hollywood, voted to unionize in late March as an independent entity under the auspices of Strippers United, a federally-recognized organization by the National Labor Relations Board, which describes itself as a “diverse and inclusive community of strippers” seeking to “dismantle whorephobia and decriminalize sex work.” The union has filed several complaints with California authorities alleging that the club is guilty of several safety violations, including broken glass, furniture with bed bugs, infestation of rats and cockroaches, rusty nails protruding on stage, and white substances falling from the ceiling. Weird, a self-proclaimed dive bar with the aforementioned code violations. A Sullivan County Shout-Out to my 1st Vice President New census data shows the Catskills are growing after years of population loss. Each of the five counties of the Catskills — Greene, Schoharie, Delaware, Ulster and Sullivan — were among the top 10 counties for population growth in the state, according to the data, which tracks changes from July 2020 to July 2021. Sullivan County had the largest population gain in the state by percentage, growing 1.5 percent, or by 1,163 people, while Greene County had the second largest, growing 1.3 percent, or by 609 people. Sullivan County, Andy, Sullivan County. Headline of the Week, Quote of the Week and This Week’s Sign that the Apocalypse is Upon Us All Rolled up Into One Story Headline California Cop Arrested After Allegedly Masturbating in Home During Domestic Disturbance Call The Apocalypse As the headline states - A San Jose Officer was arrested after he was caught masturbating inside the home of a family who called police for help with a domestic disturbance. The four-year officer had been called to the home with other officers on a report of a mentally ill family member getting violent. He then sent the two other officers away to find the mentally ill family member and it was at this point he decided it was the appropriate time to “touch himself” in front of two female family members, then exposed himself to the mother. Quote “The charged behavior is beyond disturbing. Law enforcement officers respond to our homes to help crime victims, not terrorize, traumatize, and create new victims,” said Santa Clara County D.A. Jeff Rosen. Maybe he was looking for a Section Eight? “When I leave the Army, it’ll be the HONORABLE way—with a Section Eight!” - Corp. Maxwell Q. Klinger, “M*A*S*H” Mailbag Other than the cease-and-desist letter that was sent to me, I have not received any crazy emails or letters lately. I will make mention of the nice message I recently received from retired member David Carr. Tom Mungeer, I have been retired from Troop A BCI since 1976. Worked for United Refining Company, in their Loss Prevention & Security Dept for 15 years, was on the Westfield Village Board for another 12 years and was Mayor for 10 years. During my time with the NYSP we had no one to stand up for us who had balls enough to speak up for us. I admire your tenacity in speaking out. I read every one of your articles, sometimes serious and other times funny. Keep up your defending of the best State Police organization in the country Keep up the due diligence. Dave Carr, Troop A BCI ret. Mr. Carr has been a strong advocate for the older retirees and getting out the message that the annual COLA is certainly inadequate. We all believe that our pensions are enough when we enter retirement, but it doesn’t take long for inflation to quickly erode the buying power of these hard-earned monthly benefits. This is not only a State Police problem, but an overall problem with retirees throughout the pension system and we are currently trying to rally our counterparts in the other state unions to make a concerted push to increase the COLA. For the record, Mr. Carr’s retirement when he left the NYSP in 1976 was $900 per month. Thank you for your service, sir. Scorecard Johnny Depp – 10 Amber Heard – 2 Bed sheets – 0 This email is an automated notification, which is unable to receive replies. To send a comment to the NYSTPBA, please contact us at nystpba@nystpba.org.

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