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Connections

The Police Accountability Board's uncertain future

Four people wearing headphones sit at a table in a radio talk studio: a man at foreground left is bald and is wearing glasses, a black polo shirt, jeans and white sneakers; a man at foreground right has short dark hair and is wearing a light blue quilted pullover, jeans and sneakers; a man at background left has short brown hair, a brown beard and is wearing glasses, a black cardigan and black t-shirt; a woman at right has grey braids and is wearing a denim jacket over a brown patterned shirt.
David Griffin
/
WXXI News
(foreground) Larry Knox, (background) Gino Fanelli and Lesli Myers-Small on "Connections with Evan Dawson" on Tuesday, May 6, 2025
A smiling man with short dark hair wearing a blue button-down shirt and a grey blazer. He is holding a pair of eyeglasses. The word "Connections" appears on the left side of the photo in vertical letters.
WXXI News

A recent state Supreme Court ruling stripped the Rochester Police Accountability Board (PAB) of its investigatory power. The decision was made following a complaint by the Rochester Police Locust Club.

The PAB was already lacking disciplinary power. As reported by WXXI's Gino Fanelli, "The ruling allows for the PAB to do two things: it can exist, and it can review and recommend changes to department policy."

The board can appeal, but there are still questions about what it will be able to accomplish in the future. We discuss that future with PAB Executive Director Lesli Myers-Small and Gino Fanelli.

In studio:

Evan Dawson is the host of "Connections with Evan Dawson." He joined WXXI in January 2014 after working at 13WHAM-TV, where he served as morning news anchor. He was hired as a reporter for 13WHAM-TV in 2003 before being promoted to anchor in 2007.
Megan Mack is the executive producer of "Connections with Evan Dawson" and live/televised engagement programming.
Julie Williams is an associate producer for "Connections with Evan Dawson" and is also the office administrator for radio, news and technology and operations. She started at WXXI in 2019 and has been working on Connections since 2022.