Press-Republican ELIZABETHTOWN Essex County has officially adopted and submitted to the state a new county sheriff’s department policy that sets a Law Enforcement Code of Ethics and specifies when deadly force may be used. Called “The Reform and Reinvention of Policing,” the 33-page plan was mandated by an executive order from Gov. Andrew Cuomo that tied filing a plan to receiving future state aid. The county Board of Supervisors unanimously approved the plan at its March regular meeting.
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– The plan calls for deescalation of situations before force is used, and says only the amount of force necessary to control a situation should be used.
Hope for the Forum
Bravos to George Pensel for considering the Lake George Forum for an expansion of his boat-selling business, Boats by George. Boat sales were reportedly strong during the pandemic, as people who had tired of being cooped up indoors sought ways to recreate outside safely. Formerly a hockey rink and more recently a big, underused space, the Forum is an attractive venue in a great location. It seems ideal for a boat sales showroom. If Pensel buys it, he intends to sink a lot of money into renovations and to seek some tax breaks from the Warren-Washington Industrial Development Agency. Although we are sometimes skeptical of the need to give tax breaks to established, successful businesses, we see the value in helping Pensel bring to vibrant life what is now a frequently empty building in a prominent location leading into Lake George.
By Ryan Shepard
Former police officer
Sean McKown has pleaded guilty after being charged with fabricating a story about firing his gun during an altercation with a group of Black teens. The incident in question took place in June when he was at his upstate New York residence. McKown claimed that he fired his weapon towards a group of Black teens who had fired first. Further investigation found no evidence of an altercation, but rather McKown had returned from a night of drinking and fired his weapon.
After the state police began looking into the matter, McKown reportedly admitted that he fabricated the story. According to the Albany Times-Union, the 19-year veteran police officer admitted to firing his gun into a tree stump and then getting rid of it. Adding on, state troopers said that McKown s stories were inconsistent and they never believed him. The former police officer never came in contact with a group of Black youths and an altercation occurred.
Associated Press ALBANY A white former police officer has been charged with falsely reporting a gunfight with a group of Black youths at his camp in the Adirondacks while he was off duty last summer, the Essex County District Attorney’s Office said Thursday. Sean McKown was arraigned last week on four misdemeanor charges, including falsely reporting an incident and illegally discharging a firearm within 500 feet of a dwelling, District Attorney Kristy Sprague said in a news release. “The charges filed stem from allegedly false reports of an incident (which did not occur) that were allegedly made to 911 by Sean McKown,” Sprague said in a statement. “The discharging of the firearm charge was also allegedly shots fired within 500 feet of a dwelling by Sean McKown, with no specific dwelling or victim named.”