I wanted to follow up on my September 23, 2024 article “Cayuga County Law Enforcement and District Attorney to Speak at Community Event” to give an update on this important event. I am also writing this article for up-and-coming young professionals and community activists to give you some ideas on how a person like me who, for their adult life, has been a community activist in one form or another…uses various strategies to achieve goals. Someday this is going to make for an excellent screenplay or novel!
I feel pretty confident stating that I can share an update on the specific event. That’s because on Tuesday, September 24, 2024, I hopped on a plane in Denver, CO and flew to Syracuse, NY arriving in my hotel just after midnight, Wednesday, September 25, 2024. I specifically caught a flight just to attend that Cayuga County community event at the Booker T. Washington Community Center…in person…
I had several reasons for wanting to attend this important Cayuga County Community Event:
Make my physical presence known to show my dedication and commitment for what I am doing to support the families of Cayuga County, NY.
Continue to raise awareness of the corruption within the Cayuga County government and legal system.
Continue to raise awareness of the website ReportAbuseCayuga.com as explained in this article on “… A Case Study In Community Activism and Seeking Justice”.
Most importantly for me was to have the opportunity to meet with key people within the Cayuga County community.
Cayuga County Sheriff Brian Schenck – I have been in active communication via phone and email with Sheriff Schenck for almost one year now. He has been very responsive to returning my calls and emails, however, I had not had the chance to meet him in person. Attending this event on Wednesday gave me the opportunity to meet the Sheriff in person and I am happy to report that he is both very professional and a very welcoming member of law enforcement.
Auburn Police Chief James Slayton – I had not been communicating with Chief Slayton as I have been dealing mainly with Sheriff Schenck and the local New York State Troopers. However, I have been paying close attention to the Cayuga County-area police blotter from the Auburn Citizen newspaper to compare the number of arrests being made between the various law enforcement agencies. One of the best things The (Auburn) Citizen did for this blotter was to include law enforcement activity outside of Cayuga County. There are connections that run across county lines…of course.
Mr. Bill Berry, Publisher/CEO of aaduna, Inc – I recently met Mr. Berry via an exchange of a few emails and then followed up reading more on his biography. I admitted to Mr. Berry when I introduced myself that having the opportunity to meet him in person was absolutely a reason for my impromptu trip. I have already extended an invitation to Mr. Berry to catch up when I get back to New York State at the end of October and I can say that there will be one meeting I will absolutely be looking forward to! I bet he has some awesome stories and adventures to share!
I also met a number of other law enforcement officials and other community activists. It was great connecting with these people, if only for that evening. If you were in attendance, feel free to connect up with me.
Pictured from left to right:
I really enjoyed the facilitation style of Mr. Berry. Throughout the evening, he kept reiterating the theme of the gathering which was “Connecting Bridges”. One of the best parts of the evening for me was just before the question-and-answer session…he asked the three speakers to comes sit closer and front and center near the community members. I had a great seat in the front row!
Pictured from left to right:
Besides wanting to hear about initiatives from these law enforcement officials, I was particularly interested in hearing more about the SaferWatch app the Cayuga County Sheriff rolled out earlier this summer. While it has only been a few months since implementation, he stated he is already seeing a positive impact from its use by community members.
The Sheriff also kept reiterating that dealing with crime requires two-way communication between law enforcement and community members…by reporting crime. A community member in the audience also brought up excellent points around too words related to this two-way communication…those were “community engagement”. I agreed and stated I think the SaferWatch app is a great first start to achieves goals for both the law enforcement and community members.
After the meeting, I have to admit that I have been disappointed with the local coverage of the SaferWatch app and promoting its use. I have also been wondering to myself why the local newspapers don’t offer the Cayuga County Sheriff a standing digital banner ad in their digital newspapers as a public service. This banner ad would just link to the SaferWatch app download webpage. Too bad that webpage doesn’t have a QR code as well to make it easier for people to get the app on their phones.
At the meeting, I asked Sheriff Schenck the following general questions about the SaferWatch app.
Does the SaferWatch app have a dashboard such that metrics can be pulled out for data and trend analysis?
If metrics and trending information can be pulled out, will this information be shared with other law enforcement agencies such as the Auburn Police, other county Sheriff’s, and the local New York State Troopers?
Will any of these data and metrics be made available to the public?
I also publicly acknowledged that I was well aware the app had only recently been rolled out, so I was just checking to see how implementation was going. Sheriff Schenk did a good job giving an overview of the app and also acknowledged implementation was still in the early phases, however, things look promising if there is community engagement in using the app. I have to admit that I have not done a deep dive analysis of the SaferWatch app yet myself. Unfortunately, I continue to have to spend a substantial amount of time trying to round up unethical legal professionals in Cayuga County. However, I fully intend on doing a deep dive into the SaferWatch app at some point and will provide feedback to Sheriff Schenck.
During the meeting there was continued lively discussion, and I was really impressed with some of the poignant questioning being asking by community members. I have to give credit to Cayuga County Sheriff Schenck and to Auburn Police Chief James Slayton as they tried answering the questions as well as highlighting both initiatives and improvements the agencies were looking at making. They had put together a nice display board as well for both law enforcement agencies.
Besides getting to meet Mr. Berry, Sheriff Schenck, and Chief Slayton, the real highlight of the meeting for me was the closing remarks from a local representative with the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP). He spoke eloquently yet made his point crystal clear. It was a true pleasure to be in the room to witness such confidence and leadership. After the meeting I went up to this representative to introduce myself and provided him with my contact information and my support for dealing with Cayuga County too.
Coverage of this community event:
Sheriff Schenck: Anonymous tips play crucial role in preventing, solving crimes, September 26, 2024.
I’m the guy sitting in the front row directly across from Cayuga County District Attorney Brittany Grome Antonacci. I’m wearing a grey T-shirt and teal shorts in the front row with a blue hoodie on my chair. It’s this same T-shirt that I wore in Albany, NY earlier this year…
Despite the impromptu decision to attend that event as the associated travel, I can honestly say that it was well worth the time and effort! The contacts that I met that evening were well worth it alone. Dear young professionals and up and coming community activists…cultivate your professional networks well….
-Jerry
PS (Humor): Before making this impromptu trip, I checked in with a sage wiseman who I seek his advice and counsel for times like these. I simply asked him if it was a smart idea and a worthwhile use of energy and resources…just so I could sit in the front row at the event. He paused for a minute, put his right hand near his chin while gazing upward and stopped for a nanosecond. He then turned to me and flatly said…”It’s no worse than anything else you have done so far”. Aaahhh yes…that led to my plane ticket to Syracuse, NY to have more fun in Cayuga County!
Related article that serves as a Table of Contents for articles on Cayuga County: “The Morning After...(humor…but not really)”