SUNY police department manuals for the four university centers

To Whom It May Concern:

Pursuant to the New York State Freedom of Information Law (1977 N.Y. Laws ch. 933), I hereby request the following records:

The police department manuals for the State University of New York at Albany, the State University of New York at Binghamton, the State University of New York at Buffalo, and the State University of New York at Stony Brook.

Incidentally, SUNY Police Commissioner R. Bruce McBride has noted that the SUNY Police Manual https://www.suny.edu/sunypp/docs/364.doc is in need of updating (some formatting changes have been made below); that manual was last updated in 2007 and even at that point various cyber crimes had not been addressed in it.

"From: 'McBride, Bruce' [...]
"Subject: RE: SUNY University Police training concerns?
"Date: November 19, 2012 at 11:20:59 AM EST
"To: Christopher Philippo [...]
"Good morning Mr. Philippo:
"The University-wide manual that you cite is currently in use. Certain parts of the document need to be updated. Thank you for bringing this to my attention.
"Bruce McBride
"Commissioner for Police"

In addition to that SUNY Police Manual, individual campus SUNY police departments also have their own:

"Because each police department is independently operated, each employs their own manual of procedures; a manual of procedures is a standard feature in any institution by no more so than within a police department. Yet, SUNY police department --- SUNY --- yet some SUNY police departments do not have a manual of procedures. This means that a police office has little or no direction as to how the university wishes to address a specific problem, thus liability issues arise.”
James Lyman, Executive Director of Council 82 for the New York State Law Enforcement Officers Union. (111). http://www.nysenate.gov/files/SUNY%20testimony%20pt.%202.PDF

Judging from that testimony it would seem possible, if known problems relating to SUNY Police manuals inexplicably still have not been addressed all these years later, that the State University of New York at Albany, the State University of New York at Binghamton, the State University of New York at Buffalo, and/or the State University of New York at Stony Brook might not have manuals of procedures. If any one of them does not, then that would seem just as problematic now as when James Lyman originally testified about that issue and he and others (e.g. Peter Barry) also testified about other serious issues pertaining to SUNY Police, e.g.

"there are police chiefs in SUNY who are not mandating policer [sic] officers, certified, whatever. We have police chiefs that refuse to voluntarily give up their fingerprints"
James Lyman, Executive Director of Council 82 for the New York State Law Enforcement Officers Union. (108). http://www.nysenate.gov/files/SUNY%20testimony%20pt.%202.PDF

“each campus police department relies on SUNY to recruit, collectively bargain, and pay their police officers, but they do not have to answer in any way to SUNY System Administration's Office of University Police. What’s more, is that instead of having a singular commissioner, with a career or experience making critical decisions, many campuses have appointed — appointed police chiefs, without police officer experience or certification in this state”
Peter Barry, VP & Legislative Director of NYS University Police Officers Union Local 1792 of the American Federation of State County & Municipal Employees AFSCME, Council 82 & AFL-CIO. (120). http://www.nysenate.gov/files/SUNY%20testimony%20pt.%202.PDF

"SUNY police chiefs serve at the pleasure of the campus president, thus are motivated to keep crime stats down by any means […] SUNY can no longer afford to staff, or overstaff, a body, or overstaff, a body which is subject to inefficiencies, manipulation, cronyism, ill motivation and mismanagement."
Peter Barry, VP & Legislative Director of NYS University Police Officers Union Local 1792 of the American Federation of State County & Municipal Employees AFSCME, Council 82 & AFL-CIO. (127-128). http://www.nysenate.gov/files/SUNY%20Testimony%20pt.%203.PDF

SUNY system administration presumably has ensured that it has copies of the police manuals for all the SUNY Police departments given the rather severe criticism made of SUNY Police in that testimony. SUNY system administration presumably has ensured that it does have copies of all such manuals, given that SUNY stated SUNY Police Commissioner McBride "will oversee police and security for the 64 SUNY campuses and liaison with state agencies and local police departments" and given that when Mr. McBride was appointed in late 2012 he was "a current professor of Criminal Justice at Utica College and a former SUNY Assistant Vice Chancellor for University Life and University Police, having spent 13 years of his career at System Administration in Albany, from 1987-2000." "R. Bruce McBride Appointed Commissioner of University Police." October 16, 2012. http://www.suny.edu/sunynews/News.cfm?filname=10.16.12McBrideAppointedCommissionerofUniversityPolice.htm If, instead, SUNY system administration in 2014 still does not have police manuals for at least the four campus centers, it would perhaps be one indication that Mr. McBride has done a poor job of overseeing police and security, in addition to other issues such as the SUNY Albany Police having mismanaged their sexual offender registry for so many years, SUNY Albany having failed to make agreements or Memorandums of Understanding with all adjacent law enforcement agencies as N.Y. EDUC. LAW § 355 (2) (l) would appear to require, in relevant part: "Subject to the approval of the chancellor, the president of each state-operated campus of the state university shall enter into a written agreement with adjoining law enforcement agencies establishing protocols for the exercise of authority by such university police officer off-campus, including mutual aid and assistance. Such written protocols shall not be deemed to supersede the authority of other police officers", etc.

If SUNY system administration is to claim that FOIL requests would have to be made to the Records Access Officers at the individual campuses, I remind SUNY system administration that the so-called head of the SUNY judicial administrators group Clarence L. McNeill threatened me in writing not to communicate with anyone other than himself at the University at Albany subsequent to my having, among other things, reported academic dishonesty, faculty ethics violations, sexual harassment, and retaliation to him. Mr. McNeill also had sent a threat to my mother, after he'd tipped off then-untenured Visiting Assistant Professor Michael W. Barberich that I'd reported him. Mr. McNeill's threat, among other things, noted that he'd provided my mother's home address to Mr. Barberich, something Mr. McNeill later denied to UAlbany Clery Act Compliance Officer (and Mr. McNeill's former boss and advocate) John Murphy (Mr. Murphy noted Mr. McNeill's claim to him contradicted what Mr. McNeill had previously claimed in writing). Mr. McNeill had sent that claim that he'd provided my mother's home address to Mr. Barberich after Mr. Barberich had filed a demonstrably false police report with the SUNY Albany Police about me in which he claimed to fear he and the students allegedly in his class were in imminent danger from me. Despite there having been a real shooter in a lecture hall, the UAlbany Police's report about Mr. Barberich's alarmist false police report gives no indication that they checked the lecture hall he claimed was in imminent danger, nor any indication of Mr. Barberich mentioning that the class had been cancelled and he had a policy of unlimited unexcused absences and that it was the last class of the semester when many students typically don't attend anyway. The UAlbany Police further falsified the report and posted a false summary of the report to their online crime log. When I learned of the report, they refused to correct or amend the falsehoods in it, refused to reopen it, and would not to take a police report from me or offer me assistance. "Chief" Wiley claimed that he'd forward my concerns to the office of Student Rights and Responsibilities - but there is no office by that name.

Distinguished Professor of History, Collins Fellow, and SUNY Albany College of Arts and Sciences Associate Dean John Monfasani, Ph.D. has stated "McNeill is an incompetent; Barberich an outrage; and Alterriba a negligent chair." It's unclear why, as Associate Dean, he has not ensured that decisive actions be taken with respect to incompetence, negligence, and outrage.

I still have yet to hear from SUNY system administration how SUNY intends to remedy such problems and other problems. The agreement between SUNY and the U.S. Department of Education's Office for Civil Rights (OCR) requires that "each of the individual campuses that OCR visited [of which UAlbany is one] must reexamine all sexual harassment/violence complaints filed during and since academic year 2011-2012. SUNY must report to OCR the actions it will take to correct problems identified in the manner in which these four campuses handled those complaints, which may include providing individual remedies for students." http://www.ed.gov/news/press-releases/us-department-education-reaches-agreement-state-university-new-york-address-and- I had also reported to Mr. McNeill (and others) quid pro quo sexual harassment by then-Communication Department chair and chair of UAlbany's "Presidential Advisory Council for the Prevention of Sexual Assault" Jeanette Altarriba - she had required me to remain in Mr. Barberich's class continuing to be subjected to his unprofessional, offensive, and alarming behavior as a condition of receiving my degree and graduating despite my having repeatedly indicated to her my offense and extreme discomfort regarding Mr. Barberich's behavior. UAlbany inexplicably promoted Ms. Altarriba to Vice Provost and Dean for Undergraduate Education at University at Albany and promoted Sue Faerman (who I also contacted for help) to Senior ‎Vice Provost and Dean for Undergraduate Education at University at Albany, an apparently new position they created for her despite UAlbany significantly decreasing in size with the loss of the College of Nanoscale Science and Engineering and thus presumably in less need of top administrators, not more. Problems with administration at UAlbany seem rampant, as even the newspaper published by the President of the Board of Directors of the University at Albany Foundation has somehow seen fit to note (albeit without noting that its publisher is the President of the Board of Directors of the University at Albany Foundation), e.g.:

"The University at Albany has allowed faculty to abuse its sabbatical system by approving paid leave with no apparent educational value, according to a new state comptroller's report. [...] A dean was encouraged to resign and return to regular teaching by being offered a year of paid leave, which cost the school $210,000. DiNapoli's office also found that the State University of New York system never implemented findings recommended 22 years ago to ensure paid leaves for faculty actually benefited the campus."
Waldman, Scott. "Comptroller: $1M sabbatical gravy train at UAlbany; $1M in questionable paid time off for academics, comptroller says." Albany Times Union. July 31, 2013. http://www.timesunion.com/local/article/Comptroller-1M-sabbatical-gravy-train-at-UAlbany-4696972.php

I also request that, if appropriate, fees be waived as I believe this request is in the public interest. The requested documents will be made available to the general public free of charge as part of the public information service at MuckRock.com, processed by a representative of the news media/press and is made in the process of news gathering and not for commercial usage.

In the event that fees cannot be waived, I would be grateful if you would inform me of the total charges in advance of fulfilling my request. I would prefer the request filled electronically, by e-mail attachment if available or CD-ROM if not.

Thank you in advance for your anticipated cooperation in this matter. I look forward to receiving your response to this request within 5 business days, as the statute requires.

Sincerely,

Christopher Philippo

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"Jeanne Clery Disclosure of Campus Security Policy and Campus Crime Statistics Act" 20 U.S.C. § 1092(f) (17)

"Nothing in this subsection shall be construed to permit an institution, or an officer, employee, or agent of an institution, participating in any program under this subchapter and part C of subchapter I of chapter 34 of title 42 to retaliate, intimidate, threaten, coerce, or otherwise discriminate against any individual with respect to the implementation of any provision of this subsection."
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"Any threat of retaliation or other attempts to prevent the reporting of sexual misconduct will be prohibited and is subject to disciplinary action. Reports of retaliation should be made to the Director of Conflict Resolution and Civic Responsibility [Clarence L. McNeill] (518-442-­5501) and/or the Associate Director of Residential Life/Quad Supervisor (518-442­-5875) who will assist in filing a complaint for university disciplinary action.
"Definition: Retaliation is an intentional act taken against an individual who initiates any sexual misconduct complaint, including stalking or intimate partner violence, pursues legal recourse for such a complaint, or participates in any manner in the investigation of such a report. Any act of retaliation is prohibited and is subject to judicial referral."
http://www.albany.edu/studentconduct/27173.php

"That would not be reported to me."
Director of Conflict Resolution and Civic Responsibility Clarence L. McNeill, "RE: retaliation?" December 9, 2011 12:44:30 PM EST. E-mail from Clarence L. McNeill to Chris K. Philippo.

To clarify one part of the above, though it is again incidental to the request for the police department manuals for the State University of New York at Albany, the State University of New York at Binghamton, the State University of New York at Buffalo, and the State University of New York at Stony Brook:

"Despite there having been a real shooter in a lecture hall [i.e. in the past, Ralph J. Tortorici http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/pages/frontline/shows/crime/ ] the UAlbany Police's report about Mr. Barberich's alarmist false police report gives no indication that they checked the lecture hall he claimed was in imminent danger".

Reporting Officer Lt. Paul Burlingame's report indicated that Barberich falsely reported that I had "been disrupting his class by challenging his teaching abilities and methods throughout the semester [Barberich] reports that the conduct has worsened since Thanksgiving, with Philippo sending emails to his Department Chair and posting remarks on the student electronic blackboard" UAlbany *requires* students to report academic dishonesty of the kind Barberich repeatedly engaged in and that he permitted from students in his class, and UAlbany encourages students to report sexual harassment of the kind Barberich repeatedly engaged in, and the Chair herself repeatedly encouraged me to report Barberich's academic dishonesty, faculty ethics violations, and sexual harassment to her - though she refused to grant me academic accommodation that would permit me to drop the class, instead requiring that I (and other students!) be further subjected to Barberich's offensive academic dishonesty, faculty ethics violations, and sexual harassment as a condition of receiving a degree in Communication and graduating.

I reported acts of disruption in the class of the kind UAlbany identifies as problems, and Barberich and the university did not stop those acts I'd reported - though Jeanette Altarriba claimed in writing to have "addressed" them through "internal mechanisms to do so." Barberich's false police report that I'd disrupted his class all semester leaves unexplained why he did not follow university policy with respect to the disruption he falsely claimed I'd been committing or the state of mind he alleged I had http://www.albany.edu/undergraduateeducation/18530.php http://www.albany.edu/cas/assets/2011-cas-disruptive-behaviors-classroom.pdf http://www.albany.edu/counseling_center/docs/Responding_to_Students_in_Crisis_2009.doc

With respect to the Reporting Officer, Lt. Paul Burlingame, in Abdul-Wahhab v. The State of New York, I presume while under oath, Mr. Burlingame had stated (in the words of the decision, not his) that he'd "never received any training in the Personal Property Law" and Assistant Chief of Police Paul Berger had stated (in the words of the decision, not his) that he "was not aware of the provisions of the Personal Property law". It's hard to understand how they'd failed to receive training regarding the Personal Property Law, or to learn it on their own, or why they would have been given orders to participate in such an ill-conceived operation (two male officers hiding in a women's restroom, using a peephole in the women's restroom, etc.?). To single out several sections from the SUNY Police Manual (though there are others that appear relevant as well):

§ 10.11 "University police members will be responsible for their own standard of professional performance and will take every reasonable opportunity to enhance and improve their level of knowledge and competence.

"Through study and experience, a university police member can acquire the high level of knowledge and competence that is essential for the efficient and effective performance of duty. The acquisition of knowledge is a never-ending process of personal and professional development that should be pursued constantly."

§ 15.09 "Every member is required to establish and maintain a working knowledge of laws, local ordinances, the rules and policies of the university department, and orders of the department. In the event of improper action or breach of discipline, it will be presumed that the member was familiar with the law, rule or policy in question and will be subject to possible disciplinary action."

§ 15.11 "Members and employees shall observe and obey all laws and ordinances, all rules and regulations of the department and all general or special orders of the department."

§ 20.08 "All members shall attend in-service training as directed by the chief of university police. Such attendance is considered a duty assignment."

Clearly they had not taken "every reasonable opportunity" if what they'd stated to the court was correct; they'd had several years to find such an opportunity and had failed to do so. They had not established and maintained a "working knowledge of laws", had failed to "observe and obey" the law, and following what might be described as "improper action" they claimed to be ignorant of the law contrary to the directive of the SUNY Police Manual that "it will be presumed that the member was familiar with the law".

Mr. Burlingame's promotion, given the actions that led up to Abdul-Wahhab v. The State of New York and his testimony in that case, is fairly inexplicable.

Mr. Burlingame's report mentioning me went on to indicate Barberich claimed he "believes that Philippo is unstable and fears for the [sic] his personal safety and the safety of the other students in his class [Barberich] further stated that he believes Philippo may attempt to come to his class or his office, despite being told by Conflict Resolution not to attend the class anymore. [Barberich] was advised the incident does not appear criminal at this point, but would be documented. [Barberich] was advised to avoid contact with Philippo and contact UPD immediately if he comes in contact with Philippo and feels threatened. A copy of [Barberich's?] email to his Union Representative was forwarded to ITRO."

Given the reference to Barberich's alleged union representative, it is again worth mentioning that Barberich's wife is Capital District spokesperson for the Civil Service Employees Association Therese Assalian, and she has threatened local public schools with expensive litigation over such matters as a public school firing a school bus driver for having unrepentantly threatened to hire a hitman to murder a whistleblower for reporting her erratic driving.

Bolton, Michael Morgon. "Bus Driver Firing Upheld" Albany Times-Union. January 30, 2004: B4. http://albarchive.merlinone.net/mweb/wmsql.wm.request?oneimage&imageid=6274649 ("Albany Donna Bottari was so steamed that a fellow Saratoga Springs school bus driver reported her erratic driving in May 2002 that she told a co-worker she was going to arrange a 'hit' on him, according to a court decision released Thursday. Not a good idea. Following a two-year court battle, the Appellate Division of state Supreme Court ruled Thursday that Bottari must be fired. The 4-0 decision reversed a move by Saratoga County Supreme Court Justice Thomas D. Nolan Jr. to reinstate Bottari last summer. […] 'We're disappointed with the decision,' said Therese Assalian, a spokeswoman with the Civil Service Employees Association. 'We agree with the lower court, and we're considering our options. 'That might include taking the case to the Court of Appeals, she said.'")

Cook, Steven and Michael Goot. “Raucci charged in Schodack case; Alleged arsonist Steve Raucci posted $200,000 bond Tuesday and was released — into the waiting handcuffs of a Schodack police detective.” Daily Gazette [Schenectady, NY]. February 25, 2009. http://www.dailygazette.com/news/2009/feb/25/0225_raucci/?print (“Capital Region CSEA spokeswoman Therese Assalian said the Schenectady CSEA Local 407 chapter had been placed in ‘administratorship’ on Monday, which means that the state CSEA will take over day-to-day operations of the bargaining unit. She said the local chapter also has a vice president, treasurer and secretary, but state CSEA believed it was best to step in as a result of the allegations against Raucci. Assalian believed Raucci has been president since 2001 and receives no salary for the position. She was not aware of any issues at the local chapter. She said the local chapter functions fairly independently, although it receives support from the regional and state organization. Assalian said it was somewhat unusual — though not unheard of — that Raucci would be union president while holding a management position. ‘It’s not something we can control or change.’”)

Hutchins, Ryan. "Dark portrait of suspect grows; Prosecutor says school official routinely used fear as tactic." Albany Times-Union. February 27, 2009: A1. http://albarchive.merlinone.net/mweb/wmsql.wm.request?oneimage&imageid=7544901 ("Since his arrest a week ago on a first-degree arson charge, and the discovery of a small explosive device in his office at Mont Pleasant Middle School, a portrait has begun to emerge. It shows a man who'd grown up in a family involved both in organized crime and a murderous personal dispute. Carney painted him as someone who'd coveted power and sought to strike fear into the hearts of anyone who stood in the way of him, his associates or even his school and union. ‘He has a more than 20-year history of intimidation and vandalism, and that's his pattern,’ Carney said on the Vandenburgh show. […] Raucci is also the son of Joseph Raucci, who pleaded guilty in 1986 at the age of 69 to two counts of attempted murder and one charge of manslaughter in the death of his 6-year-old son, and wounding of his estranged wife and her boyfriend. He was sentenced to 16 2/3 to 50 years in state prison, where he died in 1992. Prior to the shooting, Kathie Raucci had sought protection from her husband, but Rotterdam police told her not to worry, saying Joseph Raucci was more likely to commit suicide than homicide. A federal jury found that the town failed to protect the victims and ordered Rotterdam to pay $525,000 in damages. The outcome of an appeal in that case was not immediately available. […] The nearly $80,000-a-year employee is also named as a defendant in a federal lawsuit filed by a custodial worker against him and the district in early 2008. Ronald Kriss, who worked as a custodian for Raucci, accuses the manager of humiliating and ridiculing him for having irritable bowel syndrome and making him the victim of a sexual game. The lawsuit says that Raucci would perform what he called the 'man game,' and 'run his hand up a male employee's thigh and attempt to grab his genitals.' […] The state CSEA has taken over daily leadership of the local unit at Schenectady schools, said Therese Assalian, a regional spokeswoman.")

With respect to my being the whistleblower who reported for academic dishonesty, sexual harassment, and retaliation the wife of CSEA official Therese Assalian, Albany County Sheriff's Office's Senior Investigator Shawn Spring, Jr. has stated that the Bottari case and Assalian's involvement in it "has a relation in that that case probably governed the reaction that the campus took with respect to you". Shawn Spring, Jr. indicated it is typical for police to give a report a "disposition" (such as "unfounded"). The SUNY Albany Police inexplicably classified Barberich's false police report as a non-criminal fight/disturbance and seem to have given it no disposition.

The SUNY Albany Police did not at the time attempt to determine my whereabouts if the report is accurate (I know I received no call from them), and they appear to have dismissed Barberich's report essentially as unfounded ("[Barberich] was advised the incident does not appear criminal at this point, but would be documented") without giving any indication that they investigated the report. Conflict Resolution had not told me not to attend the class (which was cancelled anyway), but had complimented me on my voluntary unprompted decision not to attend the class - a decision made because I did not want to be in the offensive presence of Mr. Barberich one more time even in the presence of others.

The SUNY Albany Police redacted Barberich's name from the report leaving me to infer who it was filed a false police report about me and who they instructed to contact them if I came into contact with him. To date have not instructed me to avoid contact with Barberich, though I've avoided contact with him and have avoided going on campus even though I have never been instructed not to go on campus.

John Murphy, among others, have *encouraged* me to go on campus, e.g. "May I suggest that you and I have a face-to-face conversation, Christopher, so that I may better understand your concerns about our University. You and I will forever share the common bond of having earned degrees at UAlbany and I would also like for us to share good feelings about our Alma Mater. If you are willing to join me for such a conversation, I ask that you kindly call 956-8140 to arrange a mutually convenient time for us to meet"; "let me know when you can pick [the things that previously had been promised would be mailed] up and we can arrange to meet?" - even over my objections that I would not feel safe on campus. Such acts by Murphy and others would seem to contradict any fears administrators have claimed to have about my conduct. The report, incident 23944-11 of December 6, 2011, was further falsified by the SUNY Albany Police by, e.g. stating in the "Associated Persons section in the "SUNY Student?" field that I was not a student, when in fact I was. They did not inform me of the report at the time, and subsequent to my unexpectedly learning of it later (I was seeking something else entirely with my FOIL request) Mr. McNeill sent the threat about not communicating with anyone other than himself at SUNY Albany (thus threatening me not to submit FOIL requests to the Records Access Officer or to make any reports to the SUNY Albany Police about crimes at SUNY Albany), a threat Mr. McNeill cc'd to SUNY Albany Police "Chief" J. "Frank" Wiley, who is evidently not merely unconcerned about retaliatory threats being sent to students or alumni by Mr. McNeill that attempt to prevent the reporting of sexual harassment and other crimes but is even actually involved in the backing of such threats that attempt to prevent the reporting of sexual harassment and other crimes. That is, again, the sort of dangerous problem with the SUNY Police that has been known for quite some time.

"SUNY police chiefs serve at the pleasure of the campus president, thus are motivated to keep crime stats down by any means […] SUNY can no longer afford to staff, or overstaff, a body, or overstaff, a body which is subject to inefficiencies, manipulation, cronyism, ill motivation and mismanagement."
Peter Barry, VP & Legislative Director of NYS University Police Officers Union Local 1792 of the American Federation of State County & Municipal Employees AFSCME, Council 82 & AFL-CIO. (127-128). http://www.nysenate.gov/files/SUNY%20Testimony%20pt.%203.PDF

To Whom It May Concern:

I wanted to follow up on the following Freedom of Information request, copied below, and originally submitted on March 8, 2014. Please let me know when I can expect to receive a response, or if further clarification is needed.

Thank you for your help.

It's extremely troubling for the reasons given above that SUNY System Administration's Office of University Police evidently does not have copies of the police department manuals for the four university centers: the State University of New York at Albany, the State University of New York at Binghamton, the State University of New York at Buffalo, and the State University of New York at Stony Brook.

Given your reply, "please be advised that you should contact the Records Access Officers at the individual campuses for these materials", I note that I have been advised by SUNY system administration that I may disregard the written threat by Clarence L. McNeill not to communicate with anyone other than himself at SUNY Albany. Thank you for that.

To Whom It May Concern:

I wanted to follow up on the following Freedom of Information request, copied below, and originally submitted on March 8, 2014. Please let me know when I can expect to receive a response, or if further clarification is needed.

Thank you for your help.

To Whom It May Concern:

I wanted to follow up on the following Freedom of Information request, copied below, and originally submitted on March 8, 2014. Please let me know when I can expect to receive a response, or if further clarification is needed.

Thank you for your help.