The Geneva City Council has rejected a proposal to create a new board to review complaints about police and another to eliminate the two at-large City Council positions.
Proposals rejected by identical 5-3 votes
The Finger Lakes Times reports the vote was 5-3 against both proposals, with Ward 2 Councilor Bill Pealer, Jr., Ward 6 Councilor John Salone, at-large Councilors Anthony Noone, and Frank Gaglianese III, and Mayor Steve Valentino voting no. Voting in favor of both proposals were Jan Regan from Ward 3, Ken Camera from Ward 4, and Laura Salamendra from Ward 5.
Regan proposed the resolution to create a new police review panel after Judge Craig Doran ruled the local law creating the city’s previous Police Review Board was invalid. The ruling was in response to a complaint filed by members of the police union, who said the creation of the board violated their collective bargaining agreement with the city. The panel was originally named the Police Accountability Board, but the name was changed after officers complained that name was prejudicial.
While the City Council did not appeal Doran’s ruling, some members of the panel did.
RELATED: Geneva City Council to consider alternative to invalidated Police Review Board
Salamendra’s motion to eliminate two at-large positions called political stunt
The motion to schedule a public hearing on amending the city charter to eliminate the two at-large council positions and reduce the council membership from nine to seven was introduced by Councilor Salamendra, who has frequently been at odds with at-large Councilors Noone and Gaglianese. Gaglianese called the move “just another political stunt.”
Listen to our full Inside the FLX conversation with former Police Review Board chair Jess Farrell below.
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