Latest News

October 18, 2021

Investigative Post: "911 calls down 5%; traffic stops up 48%"

By Geoff Kelly | October 18, 2021 You might imagine Buffalo police spend their shifts busting drug dealers, foiling burglaries and taking guns off the street. There’s some of that, certainly.  But an analysis by Investigative Post of five years of 911 calls shows that sort of policing …

October 6, 2021

Buffalo Common Council Passes Clean Slate Resolution

The Buffalo Common Council approved a resolution on Tuesday, October 5, 2021 in support of the Clean Slate Act (S.1553B/A.6399A), urging the New York State Legislature to end perpetual punishment for millions of New Yorkers with conviction records. Read the full press release below. 

July 14, 2021

Buffalo News: "Citizen panel questions Buffalo police chief on white supremacy in policing"

Deidre Williams |  Jul 14, 2021  Noting a series of alarming incidents around the country, members of a citizens police oversight panel that reports to the Buffalo Common Council on Wednesday questioned Police Commissioner Byron C. Lockwood on the steps being taken …

May 21, 2021

Buffalo News: "Another Voice: 'Clean Slate' law would help the once-incarcerated and their communities"

By: Tanvier Peart and Andrea Ó Súilleabháin | There is no legitimate reason to keep people in limbo when we know that automatic expungement has been proven to work. 

May 11, 2021

Buffalo Advocates Lead Charge During Statewide Town Hall to End Perpetual Punishment & the War on Drugs

On May 10, advocates, organizers, and the directly impacted gathered across the state to call on state legislators to pass three critical bills to end perpetual punishment and the War on Drugs that fuel mass incarceration.

April 4, 2021

Buffalo News: "With repeal of decades-old marijuana laws, police learn new rules to enforce and abide by"

By Maki Becker | April 4, 2021 Just a few hours after Gov. Andrew M. Cuomo signed the Marijuana Regulation and Taxation Act on Thursday, an email went out to every Buffalo police officer. "Legal update: Repeal of cannabis law," was the title of the memo. The legalization of adult use of …

March 26, 2021

Spectrum News: "Residents, Social Justice Groups Say BPD Reforms Need to Go Further"

March 26, 2021 ​Buffalonians are speaking out against what they’re calling a flawed police reform process. People across the city gave their opinions on Mayor Byron Brown’s recent recommendations to improve the Buffalo Police Department.

March 26, 2021

Buffalo News: "Buffalo's police recommendations 'barely move the needle,' critics say"

By Aaron Besecker | March 26, 2021 Mayor Byron W. Brown's draft recommendations for police reform in Buffalo released earlier this week fail to take adequate steps toward change and ignored community input, a group of activists and community groups said Friday.

March 25, 2021

The New York Times: "Opinion: Governor Cuomo, End Long-Term Solitary Confinement"

By The Editorial Board | March 25, 2021 The State of New York stands poised to overhaul the use of solitary confinement in its prisons and jails — a practice widely recognized as inhumane, arbitrary and counterproductive. Last week, state legislators passed the HALT (Humane Alternatives …

March 25, 2021

Buffalo News: "Report urging Sheriff's Office reforms approved by Erie County Legislature"

By Sandra Tan | March 25, 2021 The Erie County Legislature adopted a report Thursday recommending numerous Erie County Sheriff's Office reforms to foster diversity and transparency, hold deputies accountable, and improve community outreach and policing. 

March 16, 2021

Community Agenda Win: Off-Duty Police Officers Removed From Buffalo Public Schools

At the February 10, 2021 Buffalo Board of Education meeting, Superintendent Kriner Cash announced that off-duty police “have gone” from Buffalo Public Schools and “will no longer be in our school system.” This marks the first policy victory for PPG's 2021 Community Agenda.

March 10, 2021

Petition: The Community Restoration Project

This campaign focuses on the passage of three bills in the New York State Legislature: (1) legalizing marijuana and funding communities affected by the war on drugs;   (2) “Clean Slate,” which would allow for automatic expungement of many criminal records; and (3) equitable …