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PUBLIC TESTIMONY
Testimony by Allison Hollihan, Director of New York Initiative for Children of Incarcerated Parents at Osborne Association
9:39:33
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Allison Hollihan from the Osborne Association testified on the implementation of the New York City safeguarding children of arrested parents law and the need for NYPD to collect data on children witnessing parental arrests. She emphasized the importance of training NYPD officers and expanding community-based support for affected children.
- Highlighted the need for a sustainable NYPD training plan, as only a small portion of officers have been trained so far
- Called for the introduction of a bill requiring NYPD to collect data on children witnessing parental arrests
- Requested discretionary funding to implement training, expand community support, and collaborate with the Department of Corrections on safeguarding children during Rikers Island visits
Allison Hollihan
9:39:33
Hi.
9:39:34
My name is Allison Holohan.
9:39:35
I'm stepping in for Terini, and I am the director of the New York Initiative for Children of Incarcerated Parents at the Osborn Association.
9:39:42
Is critical for NYPD to fully implement the New York City safeguarding children of arrested parents law passed in 2019.
9:39:51
This law requires NYPD to adopt guidelines for safeguarding children present during an arrest, to train officers, provide families with information about supportive community services.
9:40:00
We are grateful for the city council fund we've received to collaborate with NYPD to implement this law.
9:40:05
This included training over 6,000 NYPD officers who tell us that our training helps them consider children's perspectives, helps them take steps to reduce trauma and to better communicate with children.
9:40:16
But we've only trained a small portion of the 36,000 uniformed members of service, which is why it's critical for us to collaborate with NYPD to develop a sustainable training plan.
9:40:26
It is also imperative for us to expand the network of community based support to ensure all children can access support post arrest.
9:40:33
We encourage the NYPD to collect data on how many children witnessed a parent's arrest to identify trends and to ensure support is available for children in all neighborhoods.
9:40:43
NYPD has declined to do so.
9:40:45
In 2019, the New York City Criminal Justice Agency found that people arrested supported more than 60,000 children in New York City, making it clear that this work is critical.
9:40:54
CGDA is no longer collecting this data, and we do not know how many children witness a parent's arrest.
9:41:00
We urge the council to introduce a bill requiring NYPD to collect this data.
9:41:06
We also seek to assist the New York Department of Corrections in developing a protocol and to train personnel on how to safeguard children whose caregivers are arrested while visiting Rikers Island.
9:41:15
We hear this happens regularly.
9:41:17
In closing, Osborne seeks discretionary funding from the council to ensure that a sustainable NYPD training plan is implemented, community support is expanded, and collaborate with DDoC to safeguard children whose caregivers are arrested while visiting Rikers Island.
9:41:35
Thank you.