Monthly Archives: August 2018

Rally vs. BPD violence Aug 17

On the afternoon of Saturday, August 11th, at the corner of Laurel Ave and Schubert St (Between Rec Park and Horace Mann Elementary School), several white police officers stopped and detained two young Black teenagers.

A 13-year-old girl was a placed in handcuffs, with witnesses at the scene describing officers forcefully lifting her off the ground after she was restrained. She was accused of spray painting a nearby wall. The girl was in distress, which prompted multiple residents to stop and document the interaction. She was later released to her parent after spending nearly a half hour in handcuffs.

A 14-year-old boy with developmental disabilities was also inexplicably stopped, searched, and taken into custody while observing the event. He was pinned down by three officers before being handcuffed and locked in a police van, where he repeatedly banged his head on a security panel as officers stood by.

Additional officers arrived on the scene, escalating the situation with the children and frightened witnesses observing the incident.

A first-hand account of the incident can be found here: https://www.facebook.com/permalink.php?story_fbid=10212830878591140&id=1364063380 

video is here: https://facebook.com/BingPLOT/videos/2060104890689388/

A community rally demanding justice for these two children abused and assaulted by Binghamton Police was held on Aug 17th at 5:45pm at 104 Laurel Ave.

[Details and updates from the PLOT facebook page]

PLOT (August 16)  demands and Media Advisory:

August 16, 2018

MEDIA ADVISORY 

 

BINGHAMTON, NY — On the afternoon of Saturday, August 11th, in the parking lot of Horace Mann Elementary School (on the corner of Laurel Ave and Schubert St), several white Binghamton Police officers confronted and detained two Black children, arresting one. A handful of concerned residents and bystanders stopped to document the interaction.

One of the children, a 13-year-old girl, was handcuffed for allegedly spray painting a nearby wall. While restrained, the child exhibited signs of distress—crying for her parents and shrieking in pain. The child was eventually released from police custody upon her parent’s arrival, after having spent nearly half an hour in handcuffs.

The second child, a 14-year-old boy with various cognitive and developmental disabilities, was inexplicably stopped, detained, and searched twice while witnessing the event. He was eventually pinned down by three officers, handcuffed, and confined to a mobile police unit—where he proceeded to bash his head on a security panel without intervention.

Throughout this ordeal, Binghamton Police officers repeatedly harassed and intimidated onlookers documenting the incident.

The highly disturbing use of force and escalation on the part of Binghamton Police officers to restrain and detain children has led concerned community members to gather in protest. We will convene Friday, August 17th, to demand justice for the trauma imposed upon the two children. In response to the officers’ failure to conduct themselves appropriately after having been made aware of the age and mental state of the children—in addition to the unnecessary provocation of children and bystanders alike—we issue the following demands:

  1. Immediate termination of all officers involved in the 8/11/18 incident in the Horace Mann Elementary School parking lot in Binghamton
  2. Immediate implementation of a Civilian Police Review Board with subpoena power, to allow community members to hold law enforcement officials accountable when they commit crimes against residents
  3. Immediate compensation from the City of Binghamton Bureau of Police to the families of the two children involved in the 8/11/18 incident, for counseling and mental health services and related expenses
  4. Timely and transparent public access to statistical demographics and data collection on ALL vehicle and pedestrian stops in the City of Binghamton
  5. Adjunct De-Escalation and Disability Awareness & Intervention Training for Binghamton Police officers who engage with the public

In addition to these demands, PLOT (@BingPLOT) is releasing video documentation of Saturday’s incident to the public, and will be hosting a public meeting and Bystander Intervention Training, Monday August 27, 6pm to 8:30pm, at United Presbyterian Church, 42 Chenango St, Binghamton.

a few pictures of the rally:

Regional Workshop Sept 15

On Saturday September 15th JUST will be hosting a regional conference on decarceration and countering “carceral humanism”.

The schedule and agenda are below, and a flyer with this information is A  is attached here: Workshop Agenda Draft Aug 21. Background readings are here.

Closing Jails and Countering “Carceral Humanism
Decarcerate Upstate Regional Meeting
September 15, 2108

Location:  Southern Tier Independence Center
135 E. Frederick St, Binghamton NY

Those of us working in the Southern Tier and beyond are encouraged by a growing movement to stem mass incarceration in our areas.  It is surprising how much is being done, in very new ways, and through new community organizations.

At the same our very success generated alternatives to incarceration that pose deep and unexpected new problems:  mental health and substance use disorder treatment and funding, for example, is being channeled by Sheriffs and Albany into our jails, while new forms of control by the police, courts, and probation, youth, and parole programs have widened the carceral net outside our jails and prisons—often pulling in service providers and community groups.

On Saturday September 15th Justice and Unity for the Southern Tier (JUST) will be hosting a regional conference to pull together our knowledge on these challenges and forge new paths to end mass incarceration while countering these new forms of “carceral humanism”.

Please join us.  The event is open to the public. If you are interested in participating in a particular workshop let us know. Also please rsvp so we an plan lunch.  And if you need translation or related services tell us (we will provide these as far as our resources permit).  Contact us at: justice.southern.tier@gmail.com

An agenda is below. It will be adjusted as participants are confirmed.

Closing Jails and Countering “Carceral Humanism”
Decarcerate Upstate Regional Meeting
September 15, 2018

11:00am

Welcome: Sue Ruff, Advocacy Director STIC
Introductions: Personal and Group Opening Remarks:  Justice Alternatives—and Countering “Carceral Humanism” Andy Pragacz

11: 30-12:15 No More Jails

Evolving local strategies in the battle against jail expansions and modernizations.

Chairs: Jack Norton and Andy Pragacz

Lead Participants (5 min presentations): representatives from JUST, Decarcerate Tompkins County, United Voices of Cortland, Vera, and…

 12:15-1:00 Bail, Court Watch and Oversight Work

What works upstate? Lessons from ongoing bail and court watch work, working with judges, DAs, courts, community and New York City organizations.

Chairs: Joey Cardamone, Citizen Action

Lead Participants (5 min presentations): Tina Chronopoulos, Bobby Black, Citizen Action, Joey Cardamone, Barrie Gewanter, Zhana Kurti, and…

 1:00-1:45: Lunch

 1:45-3:00pm Community Health vs. Incarceration

Expanding health, substance use disorder, and disability services in the community—and countering efforts to centralize health and treatment services in jails, police, and courts

Chair: Kevin Revier, Sue Ruff

Lead Participants (5 min presentations): Sue Ruff, Alexis Pleus (TruthPharm), Kevin Revier, Decarcerate Tompkins County, and United Voice of Cortland representatives, and…

3:00-3:15:  Break 

3:15-4:00:  Inside/Out:  Supporting the Incarcerated and those Coming Home

Creating and sustaining community support for those incarcerated, their families, and those coming home—as opposed to state-, police- and court-controlled programs.

Chairs: Bryce Lawson, Jessica Farrell

Lead Participants (5 min presentations):  Rozann Greco, Bryce Lawson, Tinamarie Gunther, Jessica Farrell (Mental Health Justice Project (Delaware & Otsego Counties)), and…

4:00-4:30:  Roundtable: Organizing an Agenda and Alliances for the Coming year

Lessons from working with Albany and state-wide organizations, and setting priorities from the day’s discussions

Chairs: Bill Martin, Mardi Crawford

 

The workshop will be held at the Southern Tier Independence Center, 135 E Frederick St, Binghamton, NY 13904 (back door entrance on Grant street). It will be adjusted as regional participants suggest changes and participants are confirmed.