The Board of Trustees of the Village of New Paltz wishes to make clear that we unequivocally condemn the killing of Tyre Nichols. Our hearts break for his family and loved ones. These inhuman acts should never happen. We are keenly aware that abuses of power such as these disproportionally affect our BIPOC brothers and sisters and we are committed to doing all we can for racial justice.
We are deeply disturbed by what transpired and expect our neighbors will be equally outraged. Should you wish to join us in a constructive space for shared response we have been invited to process this on Monday, January 30th at 6pm at the New Paltz United Methodist Church where there will be a reading and reflection of Dr. King’s Letter From Birmingham Jail hosted by the Elting Memorial Library & the New Paltz United Methodist Church.
While police do not fall under the purview of the Village Trustees we are committed to working with the Town to continue the work begun towards ensuring our public safety professionals are equipped, supported and educated in ways that would prevent such a catastrophe here. We are thankful to Chief Lucchesi for his statement in which he says that the NPPD is “committed to doing the work to prevent this type of brutality from occurring in New Paltz. ” and he offers to listen to our community at a special session of their Conversations with the Police on Wednesday, February 1st at 7:00pm at the New Paltz Police Department.
As Ulster County Executive Jen Metzger, Ulster County Sheriff Juan Figueroa, and Ulster County Legislature Chairwoman Tracey Bartels said in their statement “No human being should be subjected to mistreatment and misuse of force by police, who are sworn to protect and serve all communities equally. The now former police officers who carried out this heinous act of violence must be held to account for their actions.” we couldn’t agree more.
– Mayor Tim Rogers, Deputy Mayor Alexandria Wojcik, Trustee William Murray, Trustee Stana Weisburd, and Trustee Michele Zipp
Please read: JOINT STATEMENT FROM THE NEW PALTZ TOWN BOARD, NEW PALTZ VILLAGE BOARD, AND NEW PALTZ POLICE CHIEF ROBERT LUCCHESI