TROY, NY (NEWS10) – The City of Troy, led by City Council Speaker Carmella Mantello, wrote a letter to Gov. Kathy Hochul on Saturday calling for a multi-jurisdictional task force to address gun violence in the capital region. Over the past two years, the President of the Council has reportedly proposed to the previous governor to strengthen coordination and the exchange of information between state and local law enforcement.
In light of the two youth homicides in the past two months in Troy, local officials in the capital region are calling on Governor Hochul to set up a better coordinated and strengthened task force made up of municipal police agencies, of the three county sheriff’s departments (Rensselaer, Albany, and Schenectady), and the New York State Police, to combat the increase in gun and gang violence in the area. This proposal is comparable to the state’s former “Operation Impact Initiative”. In addition, the City of Troy is requesting immediate targeted state funding for youth and mentoring services, school resource officers, and other initiatives.
“Covid-19 has brought an unprecedented period of armed violence to the capital region,” Mantello said. “It will continue to cycle across our region unless we all proactively work together and tackle it now.”
Recently, the governor extended an executive order declaring gun violence a state of emergency. She said: “We must urgently confront the scourge of gun violence in our state. Too many lives are lost and too many New Yorkers live in fear. It’s a crisis. »
The City of Troy believes it is time for Governor Hochul to provide resources, tools, and most importantly, partnership to end gun violence in the capital region. City officials hope the governor will carefully consider their proposals.