MINEOLA, N.Y. (WCBS 880) — Calls mounted on Thursday for the removal of the Nassau County Police commissioner over comments he made about Black police recruits.
In an interview with Newsday, Nassau Police Commissioner Patrick Ryder said the reason why many Black candidates do not show up for the police exam is because they “come from broken homes.”
“These kids struggle in these communities because they don’t have both parents around. They don’t have a family history of law enforcement.
They’re at a disadvantage starting off. And we have to recognize it and it’s true. I can’t fix the family home, but I can fix the kid,” the police commissioner said during the interview.
Almost immediately after the comments were published, two leaders from NAACP Long Island called for Nassau County Executive Laura Curran to ask for Ryder’s resignation.
“Clearly, based on his statements, he is unfit to serve the rich diversity of Nassau County. On behalf of the NAACP Long Island Region, I call on the county executive to thank Police Commissioner Ryder for his service and expedite his retirement. If County Executive Curran in any way defends his comments, she is unfit to serve as well,” NAACP Long Island Regional Director Tracey Edwards told Newsday in response to Ryder’s comments.
Nassau Legislature Minority Leader Kevan Abrahams also said Ryder's remarks are offensive and inaccurate.
When asked about the interview during a press conference on Thursday, Ryder publicly apologized.
“My comments were not meant to paint any community with a broad brush, and if I offended anybody I apologize,” he said. “That is not my intent and never was. I give you what I'm thinking, and I tell you I look, and I know these communities that I have worked in. I mentor kids today in these communities, personally mentor them with their fathers that I've been involved with, where I have arrested [them], and their fathers speak to me to speak to their kids, and I work with them.”
Meanwhile, Curran says she is not removing Ryder from his job and stressed there are many programs that the commissioner has created, or is working on, to bring more minorities on the force.
“Part of the reason I selected him to be the police commissioner is because he has a commitment to community policing,” Curran said.
As an effort to improve police transparency and diversity, the Nassau County executive also announced that the county is purchasing 2,5000 body worn cameras for police officers to wear while on patrol.
“This is an important step that enhances transparency and promotes greater accountability in the police department,” Curran said. “We are committed to building further upon the well-established trust that the Nassau County Police Department has already established with the communities they protect and serve by implementing this critically important investigative tool.”
They are also creating a Police Diversity Committee to review current police hiring practices and to review ways that the department can strengthen various mentoring programs so that police officer candidates successfully complete each stage of the hiring process.
“I am committed to increasing diversity within the police department and look forward to exploring how the hiring process, from recruitment to training, can be improved,” said Curran.
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