By Matthew Spina
The Buffalo News, N.Y.
ERIE COUNTY, N.Y. — To settle a court case filed by state officials, Sheriff Timothy B. Howard has signed a statement admitting his office failed to properly investigate serious incidents in Erie County’s jails and did not consistently report them to a watchdog agency in Albany.
The document, signed by Howard and County Attorney Michael Siragusa, also allows an independent monitor to review the Jail Management Division’s policies and procedures, especially those dealing with sexual misconduct, and to ensure the staff are trained in them.
Also signing the document, which runs 21 pages, are Allen Riley, chairman of the state Commission of Correction, and a representative for state Attorney General Letitia James.
The commission and James filed the lawsuit March 17, after The Buffalo News revealed that Howard’s team had again failed to report serious jail matters to the commission, this time incidents or allegations of sexual misconduct.
For example, Howard’s team had not reported that female Holding Center inmates had complained about advances by Sgt. Robert Dee in 2020. The sheriff’s internal investigations cleared Dee, but the jail’s commanders were instructed to avoid assigning him to women’s units. Howard’s top jail official conceded the matters were not initially reported to the Commission of Correction.
The lawsuit identified other times when Howard aides failed to timely report allegations of sexual misconduct in the jails, and did so only after allegations surfaced in media reports. The Attorney General’s Office alleged Howard’s team conducted insufficient investigations into several incidents by neglecting to interview witnesses, evaluate all available evidence or refer the matters for criminal investigation.
In the Article 78 proceeding, the state officials asked a judge to order the sheriff to improve his office’s ability to follow the commission’s rules. Attorneys for the sheriff and the state negotiated a “final order and consent judgment” to be placed before State Supreme Court Justice Diane Devlin.
Among other things, it directs the Sheriff’s Office to provide the Commission of Correction with proof that correction officers have been trained in New York’s zero-tolerance policy regarding sexual misconduct in correctional facilities and how to handle situations where incarcerated individuals allege sexual misconduct.
It also directs the Sheriff’s Office to provide specialized training for investigators and other staff regarding investigating sexual abuse in correctional settings.
Howard has chosen not to run for another four-year term and will leave the Sheriff’s Office in January.
While the court case names him as a “respondent,” it also names Erie County government, which would respond if the order’s requirements are not met after Howard departs.
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