The state inspector general’s office has begun interviewing troopers about the alleged misuse of PGA credentials by members of the State Police who attended the Ryder Cup golf tournament. State Police Superintendent Steven G. James, center, referred the matter to that office at the direction of Gov. Kathy Hochul last year.
Will Waldron/Times Union
First Deputy Superintendent R. Christopher West retired from the State Police last year at the outset of an investigation examining the alleged misuse of law enforcement credentials at the Ryder Cup golf tournament in September on Long Island.
Will Waldron/Times Union
ALBANY — The state inspector general’s office has begun interviewing troopers about the alleged misuse of PGA credentials by members of the State Police who attended the Ryder Cup golf tournament on Long Island in September, according to two people with knowledge of the matter.
It’s unusual for the inspector general’s office to conduct investigations of the State Police, which is an agency that historically has handled its own disciplinary matters. One of the people with knowledge of the case said there also have been concerns raised within the agency about whether the inspector general’s office would begin to handle more internal investigations involving the State Police.
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The governor’s office directed State Police Superintendent Steven G. James to hand the matter to the inspector general’s office in December, a few weeks after the Times Union had posed questions to the agency about the special tournament access that had been availed to certain high-ranking officials and their family members.
The agency’s subsequent internal review had led then-First Deputy Superintendent R. Christopher West and then-Col. Darrin S. Pitkin, who were the agency’s second and third in command, respectively, to submit their paperwork to begin the process to retire from the agency. Both subsequently resigned.
In late March, James did not attend a retirement party for West that was held at The Desmond Hotel in Colonie. The event drew several hundred attendees, including many current and former State Police members, and some of the remarks made to the group were critical of James for allegedly pushing out West and Pitkin for conduct that many contend was widely known and not a misuse of authority.
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But not long after West and Pitkin left the agency, acting Staff Inspector Stephen Udice filed his paperwork to initiate his retirement from the agency. According to law enforcement sources, Udice had allegedly distributed dozens of complimentary Ryder Cup passes to friends, acquaintances and family members during the golf tournament where State Police were providing the primary security.
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During the Sept. 26-28 event, Udice had been the commanding officer of Long Island’s Troop L, which covers the State Police region that includes the renowned Black Course at Bethpage State Park in Farmingdale. Udicewas a major but had been reassigned last year to oversee the State Police professional standards bureau for New York’s southern region.
“Last week, we learned that members of our executive staff may have used work credentials supplied by the PGA, or possibly other free passes, to improperly gain admission to the Ryder Cup tournament in Long Island for themselves and in some cases, family members,” James said in a Dec. 3 statement in response to questions from the Times Union.
“From the moment we learned of these allegations, we moved quickly to determine the facts,” the superintendent added. “Based on what we have learned so far, and at the direction of Gov. (Kathy) Hochul, we are turning over this investigation to the (New York) inspector general.”
He called it “critically important that an outside, independent third party conduct a thorough investigation to avoid any appearance of a conflict.”
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In response to follow-up questions from the Times Union in December about whether Udice was under scrutiny, James had issued a statement acknowledging that the agency’s “initial review of these allegations … uncovered that the PGA may have provided free passes to members.”
Two people with knowledge of the matter said the PGA-issued passes were potentially worth hundreds of dollars each and that it was improper for any member to accept them or to redistribute them without authorization from the superintendent. State Police regulations and state ethics laws generally prohibit members from accepting gifts in connection with their official duties.
The superintendent declined to respond to additional questions about Lt. Col. Paul M. DeQuarto, who attended the event with his wife and at least one other family member. DeQuarto was seen in pictures that were shared with the Times Union in which he was wearing an official tournament credential reserved for working law enforcement while with his family members. He was not accused of wrongdoing and has remained on duty as an assistant deputy superintendent overseeing the Bureau of Criminal Investigation.
Due to their retirements, Udice, Pitkin and West are not mandated to submit to interviews with the State Police or to cooperate with any investigation by the inspector general’s office. West declined to respond to a request for comment recently.
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The three also were allowed to retire in good standing, which meant they could keep their police certification credentials and also be issued honorary State Police credentials that are provided to members upon their retirement.
The Times Union began examining the State Police’s use of Ryder Cup passes last fall after the newspaper was provided photographs of West and other high-ranking members in what appeared to be VIP areas of the biennial golf tournament, which pits players from the United States against golfers from Europe.
During the practice rounds at the challenging Black Course, West, James and Pitkin posed for a photograph with Rory McIlroy, who was a leader of the European team and one of the world’s most popular golfers.
A source briefed on the matter said the alleged misuse of credentials began during the tournament play at the event, after James had returned to Albany. In the photograph, James, Pitkin and West were all dressed in matching black casual attire and wearing lanyards that identified them as law enforcement officials. The source said those lanyards provided them access to exclusive areas of the event.
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The Times Union was informed of the matter by uniformed troopers who had questioned whether many of the high-ranking State Police officials at the exclusive competition were performing duties necessary to the agency’s security detail. Those complaints also came as they noted rank-and-file troopers were cautioned not to accept any free meals and were not provided a comfortable area where they could rest while on a break.
In February 2024, James emerged from retirement after being named superintendent by Hochul. Within hours of his appointment, he cleared out most of the agency’s top positions, removing multiple colonels and deputy superintendents from key roles in one of the agency’s biggest one-day leadership shakeups on record.
West, then an assistant deputy superintendent, was named first deputy superintendent, the agency’s second-in-command position.
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