Suffolk Reporter

Assemblyman Keith P. Brown (R,C-Northport) joined Assembly Minority Leader Will Barclay (R,C-Pulaski), Senate Minority Leader Rob Ortt (R,C-North Tonawanda), other members of the Assembly and Senate Minority Conferences, and law enforcement representatives to advocate for stronger oversight of the state parole board. Since 2017, the parole board has released 41 individuals convicted of killing police officers. Another such individual, Mitchell Martin, who killed NYPD Officer James Whittington in 1982 and was sentenced to life imprisonment, is scheduled for a parole hearing on June 11, 2024.

“Mitchell Martin should not be released on parole, period,” said Brown. “NYPD Officer James Whittington and his family deserve peace and justice, and if Martin is allowed to walk the streets of our community once more, it is an insult to James’ memory and a blatant disregard for the safety of New York families.”

Brown expressed solidarity with the family of NYPD Officer James Whittington as well as other families affected by similar tragedies. This includes Diane Piagentini, a constituent from Brown’s Assembly District and widow of New York City Patrolman Joseph Piagentini. Officer Piagentini was killed in 1971 when Anthony Bottom, now known as Jalil Muntaqim, shot him over 22 times. The State University of New York at Brockport featured Muntaqim at a campus event in 2022.

“Cop killers only have one place in our state - prison," stated Brown. "I am proud to stand with my Assembly and Senate Minority Conference colleagues to call for change and have the backs of our courageous law enforcement officers who risk their lives each day to protect us all."

To support local law enforcement further, Brown sponsored proposals A.5935, which seeks to prohibit parole or any release for those convicted of first-degree murder, and A.9788, which aims to establish a real property tax exemption for primary residences of widows and widowers of police officers killed in duty.

“I am grateful to Officer Whittington for his service to his community—he did not die in vain,” concluded Brown.