Mayor Ben Walsh Statement Regarding Syracuse Police Chief Kenton Buckner

Statement by Syracuse Mayor Ben Walsh regarding Syracuse Police Chief Kenton Buckner:

“Chief Buckner has guided the Syracuse Police Department and served our community through an extraordinary time in policing across the nation and here in Syracuse. He has proven himself as a law enforcement professional and an advocate for his officers. He has also demonstrated a willingness to listen to community feedback and an openness to change.

As I said a year ago, Chief Buckner has my support as chief of police regardless of New York State certification, which is not a requirement of the job. I did not consider his pace for a mile and a half run when I hired him and I do not measure his performance by that now. I look forward to continuing to work with Chief Buckner to keep our City safe, enhance police accountability and improve police-community relations.”