SERGEANTS BENEVOLENT ASSOCIATION
President’s Message | August 9, 2022
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Dear Fellow Sergeant,
We are living and working amid a nationwide crime epidemic. Countless civilians are being slaughtered daily, and more than 210 police officers have been shot in the line of duty this year, 40 of them fatally. There have been 46 ambush-style attacks against law enforcement, resulting in 71 officers being wounded and 18 killed.
Nowhere is the unbridled violence more evident than in New York City, which is regarded as the Capital of the World. Shootouts and acts of unprovoked violence in such tourist destinations as Times Square have made international news.
Lawlessness and urban decay are obvious as soon as visitors arrive in the city at the Port Authority Bus Terminal, Penn Station, or Grand Central Station. The first images people see are homeless encampments and aggressive panhandling.
Three out of four New Yorkers now say that being the victim of a crime surpasses contracting COVID-19 as their primary safety concern. As a result, they avoid public transportation and are wary about returning to work.
All these daily affronts are an assault on the senses of a civilized society. Despite the public making their concerns clear, many of our elected officials refuse to budge on their idiotic bail and police “reforms” that have resulted in this sense of anarchy.
The NYPD is making an abundance of quality arrests in these violent crimes, only to see many of the offenders released back into society within hours. We are at a crossroads where, if we don’t act now in a forceful and decisive manner, the city could be lost forever. If there is no accountability for one’s criminal actions, there is no justice or sense of social order.
Because our purported leaders continually refuse to address these compelling issues, we will continue to press them and hold them accountable for their ineptitude.
Also, as a member of the United Coalition of Public Safety (UCOPS) and the National Association of Police Organizations (NAPO), we are joining forces with our law enforcement colleagues from Seattle, San Jose, San Francisco, Los Angeles, Honolulu, and other cities and municipalities to address these gross injustices.
The time for action is now. As police officers, we take our oaths to protect and serve very seriously. With continual pressure on our public officials to do the right thing, we can only hope that those responsible for this climate of lawlessness will ultimately come to their senses and put the safety of all New Yorkers, as well as the NYPD, above their own political and ideological agendas. The law-abiding public and the police deserve nothing less.
Thank you for your exemplary work and your steadfast support – and please continue to remain vigilant at all times.
Fraternally,
Vincent J. Vallelong
President
Sergeants Benevolent Association
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President’s Message
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Dear Fellow Sergeant,
We are living and working in very precarious times. Crime is surging in New York City – and throughout the United States – as elected officials at all levels of government have turned their backs on the police.
New York is at the forefront of the crime epidemic. Every day we read about so many violent crimes that there is no longer any shock value associated with them. Shootings, stabbings, slashings, random assaults of innocent people, and subway attacks have become the norm.
The NYPD is working hard to make arrests and remove guns from the street but in so many cases the suspects are quickly released with little or no bail.
The police are doing their job, but the system is not working. Sadly, the elected officials responsible for this chaos will not admit their mistakes and are even doubling down on the horrific “reforms” that brought us to this untenable place.
We take our oaths to protect and serve very seriously and can only hope that with continued pressure the public officials who have created this climate of lawlessness will put the safety of all New Yorkers above their own political and ideological agendas.
Now that retroactive pay for the recently settled contract has been distributed, we have already contacted the City about our readiness to embark on a new round of contract negotiations.
Hopefully, we can finalize this contract much quicker than the last few have been settled. One of our goals is to move forward in future contract negotiations in a much more timely and efficient manner.
We have also significantly enhanced our optical benefits and are pursuing creative ways to improve our dental and prescription benefits as well. We are constantly working to improve all benefits for the membership – and we will never waver in that commitment.
It was great to see so many of you at the St. Patrick’s Day Parade and festivities. The Board members and I are extremely grateful for your votes of confidence.
This SBA administration has immense respect and admiration for the work that you do, so it is wonderful to have your steadfast support.
Thank you for your exemplary work and please continue to remain vigilant and stay safe.
Fraternally,
Vincent J. Vallelong
President
Sergeants Benevolent Association
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President’s Message
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Dear Fellow Sergeant,
There is no better way for me to describe the events of the past week than The Good, The Bad, and The Ugly. Please click on the following link and read the article for a frame of reference.
The Good
Police Officers Jason Rivera, Wilbert Mora, and Sumit Sulan: Three young men dedicated to helping others and keeping New York City safe. Together they dispelled the false narrative that cop-hating politicians have been force-feeding society. Wise and brave beyond their years, they were dedicated and determined to bring positive changes to our city.
In doing so, Officers Rivera, 22, and Mora, 27, gave their lives. Officer Sulan, 29, ensured that their killer will never kill again. We owe Officers Rivera and Mora a debt of gratitude that can never be repaid. It is their families who will forever wish their loved ones could be given a second chance in life. And we can never thank Officer Sulan enough for his gallantry under fire.
To all our fallen families, the NYPD NEVER forgets. We never have – and we never will.
The Bad
While sitting in St. Patrick’s Cathedral surrounded by many public officials at the funeral for PO Rivera, I was disgusted to my core. Some of the same bureaucrats whose villainization of the police was the bedrock for the hostile environment that got these officers killed, were elbowing their way to the front of the church for choice-seating at the major media event.
I watched with revulsion as many of them held their phones in their hands, texting constantly, oblivious to the solemnity of the affair. Calling it classless doesn’t begin to describe their reprehensible behavior. They refused to acknowledge the thunderous applause for calls for change to the perverted and obscene laws they created and foisted upon the public.
I wonder why they even attended this grave affair when it is them – and them alone – who purposely divided this city for their own political relevancy and expediency.
The Ugly
The likes of Brooklyn charter-school teacher Chris Flanigan and actress Jacqueline Guzman inserting themselves into this conversation is disgraceful.
Mr. Flanigan’s Instagram post encouraged violence, which he recoined as “reciprocity” against the police, while Ms. Guzman ranted online about the inconvenience of street closures because of PO Rivera’s funeral. To them, I ask where they were and what they were doing during the height of the COVID-19 epidemic when Police Officers didn’t have the option or convenience to stay home?
You can teach, audition, or act in a virtual setting, but you can’t protect the lives of others by Skyping or Zooming. Police Officers are some of the best teachers – and actors on the planet. We perform these roles every day – to protect all New Yorkers, including people like them who loathe us.
This Wednesday, the streets around St. Pat’s will again be closed to traffic so I urge Ms. Guzman to take the day off.
The good citizens of the greatest city in the world will be joining members of the greatest police department in the world to mourn Officer Mora – the youngest child of Dominican immigrants and a true son of New York. The streets will be lined with police personnel from throughout the country, as well as law-abiding citizens who believe in the rule of law and support the NYPD.
As sad as the funeral will be, the good will outweigh both the bad and the ugly as we bid farewell to a man who took a pledge to make a positive difference – and paid for that commitment with his life.
Fraternally,[/vc_column_text][vc_single_image image=”425735″ img_size=”full”][vc_column_text]Vincent J. Vallelong
President
Sergeants Benevolent Association
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President’s Message
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Dear Fellow Sergeant,
We began the new year with many positive things to look forward to.
After three years of often difficult negotiations we settled our contract – and it is currently pending ratification by the membership.
We have a new Mayor, Eric Adams, a former NYPD Captain, who has promised to put public safety first, which was in direct contrast to the previous administration.
Mayor Adams understands how difficult our job is, and has appointed a new Police Commissioner who has promised to support us in our efforts to keep New Yorkers, and ourselves, safe.
However, in a glaring example of sheer lunacy, newly elected Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg announced sweeping changes to the way his office will handle serious crimes.
Even such violent offenses as armed robbery could be downgraded to petit larceny with the stroke of a pen.
Within days of that proclamation, a shoplifter in the 13 Precinct used cutting shears to threaten store security personnel and make his escape with the stolen property.
I applaud the arresting Police Officer who rightfully charged the suspect with robbery, and refused to sign the accusatory instrument when the ADA made no mention of the cutting shears and wrote up the case as a simple petit larceny.
It should be noted that the suspect had 12 shoplifting arrests between November 2021 and early January 2022, but was free because of the imbecilic “bail reform” laws.
It is not our job to do battle with the DA’s office or interpret its policies, but this officer was protecting her own interests, as well as the interests of the public.
With no qualified immunity to protect us from frivolous lawsuits, it is important that we not be complicit in this political madness.
We have seen tremendous surges in crime the past few years, and it seems apparent that it is only going to get worse in the immediate future.
Should you find yourself in a similar position as the officer involved in that arrest, please immediately contact your delegate or director or an SBA board member.
We will face many challenges in 2022, including working amid the Omicron variant of COVID-19.
During these incredibly challenging times, I urge you to remain steadfast and safe, and find a degree of comfort in knowing the SBA will always have your back.
Fraternally,
Vincent J. Vallelong
President
Sergeants Benevolent Association
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A Message to the SBA Membership
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Dear Fellow Sergeant,
I understand that recent unfortunate events have been challenging and confusing on many levels. Since taking office, I have been very assertive in determining the overall condition of the SBA and making plans to move forward in a manner that in no way negatively impacts the membership.
As was stated in the email sent last week after the emergency delegates meeting, the Annuity and Health and Welfare Funds have not been compromised in any way and all member benefits are unaffected. While an outside independent accounting firm will conduct a thorough and transparent forensic accounting of our records, contract negotiations will continue as planned.
Myself, newly appointed Vice President Edmund Small, and the entire SBA board are committed to serving you in an honest, thorough, and transparent manner. We will leave no stone unturned in our search for the truth, regardless of where it leads. The SBA membership deserves nothing less.
The coming weeks will be hectic, but we will keep you apprised of important developments as they occur. Thank you very much for your support during this difficult time.
Fraternally,
Vincent J. Vallelong
President
Sergeants Benevolent Association
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