{"id":340039,"date":"2026-09-07T17:14:11","date_gmt":"2026-09-07T17:14:11","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/340039\/"},"modified":"2026-09-07T17:14:11","modified_gmt":"2026-09-07T17:14:11","slug":"scandal-over-ny-police-bigwig-linked-to-sons-gang-shooting-has-dems-running-for-the-hills","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/340039\/","title":{"rendered":"Scandal over NY police bigwig linked to son’s gang shooting has Dems running for the hills"},"content":{"rendered":"

A Westchester County police bigwig\u2019s bust for allegedly driving her son to a botched gang drive by <\/a>in the Bronx has Democrats running for cover \u2014 and Republicans saying I told you so.<\/p>\n

Ex-Mount Vernon Deputy Police Commissioner Jennifer Lackard is facing attempted murder charges<\/a> in the shocking June 29 shooting, but prominent Democrats in the region are staying mum and refusing to condemn the disgraced cop because the suburban city is a coveted party stronghold.<\/p>\n

\u201cDemocrats are the first to preach \u2018no one is above the law\u2019 until it screws them politically,\u201d Republican National Committee spokeswoman Natalie Baldassarre told The Post. \u201cThis thug-hugging mom had no business being a police commissioner, and any official who covered for her should be held to account.\u201d<\/p>\n

Former Mount Vernon Deputy Police Commissioner Jennifer Lackard was fired after her Bronx arrest. WABC-TV<\/p>\n

Jennifer Lackard (pictured) was hired by Mount Vernon Mayor Shawyn Patterson-Howard back in 2020. Mt. Vernon Police Department<\/p>\n

Yet, nearly a dozen prominent New York Democrats asked to comment on the scandal declined or ignored inquiries by The Post \u2014 while others only addressed it in generic terms. <\/p>\n

\u201cGovernor [Kathy] Hochul\u2019s top priority is public safety,\u201d said a spokesperson for Gov. Kathy Hochul, one of only two Democrats to address the scandal at all when asked for a comment. <\/p>\n

\u201cThose entrusted with keeping New Yorkers safe must be held to the highest ethical and professional standards, and anyone whose actions jeopardize the critical mission of law enforcement must be investigated and held accountable to the fullest extent of the law.\u201d<\/p>\n

Others, including pols like state Senate Majority Leader Andrea Stewart-Cousins (D-Yonkers), state Assemblyman Gary Pretlow (D-Mount Vernon) and Mount Vernon-born US Rep. George Latimer (D-New Rochelle), did not respond to the inquiries.<\/p>\n

Gov. Kathy Hochul provided a generic statement when asked about Jennifer Lackard\u2019s scandalous arrest. Stephen Yang for NY Post<\/p>\n

State Sen. Jamaal Bailey, whose district includes part of Mount Vernon, addressed the controversy more directly, calling the charges \u201cunacceptable and incredibly serious,\u201d saying the alleged acts have \u201cno place within our communities.\u201d<\/p>\n

However, even Bailey gave the city an out, adding that \u201cwhile these allegations are unacceptable and incredibly serious, it\u2019s important to note that it\u2019s not possible to predict the future behavior of any employee. The purported conduct did not occur during the course of or related to her duties and should have no bearing on how the department is viewed.\u201d<\/p>\n

Lackard, 49, and her ex-con husband, James Lackard<\/a>, are charged with driving their 20-year-old son, reputed \u201cSlutty Gang\u201d member Chase Lackard, to Bronx court for a scheduled hearing \u2014 then allegedly driving him around the block until they spotted an alleged gang rival.<\/p>\n

How The Post covered Jennifer Lackard\u2019s controversial bust in a June 29 gang shooting.<\/p>\n

Bronx prosecutors said Chase Lackard fired from their SUV<\/a>, missing the intended target before the family sped away and headed home. <\/p>\n

All three were later arrested and charged. <\/p>\n

Jennifer Lackard was hired by Democratic Mount Vernon Mayor Shawyn Patterson-Howard in 2020 for the newly created position of deputy chief of the police department\u2019s Wellness Unit, despite having no prior law enforcement experience.<\/p>\n

Patterson-Howard, who is Lackard\u2019s sorority sister<\/a>, told The Post after the arrests that she was subjected to a \u201crigorous background check\u201d and \u201cthere was no information that disqualified her for employment.\u201d<\/p>\n

She maintained that she did not meet Lackard until she applied for the city job, and cited her 15 years in the mental health and substance abuse fields as her qualifications.<\/p>\n

State Sen. Jamaal Bailey was the only local Democrat to comment directly about Jennifer Lackard\u2019s arrest. Hans Pennink<\/p>\n

A spokesperson for Mount Vernon City Hall did not respond to a request for comment on Friday.<\/p>\n

But despite the shocking nature of the allegations against Lackard, most Dems won\u2019t touch the scandal.<\/p>\n

\u201cWestchester County is responsible for approximately 4,500 county employees,\u201d a rep for Westchester County Executive Ken Jenkins said Friday. \u201cOur focus must remain on matters involving our own workforce, and we do not become involved in personnel or workplace issues with other municipalities.\u201d<\/p>\n

Neither of the two Democrats who represent parts of Mount Vernon in the county legislature, David Tubiolo and Tyrae Woodson-Samuels, have publicly chimed in on the scandal or called for a probe into <\/p>\n

Senate Majority Leader Andrea Stewart-Cousins declined to comment on Jennifer Lackard\u2019s arrest. Hans Pennink<\/p>\n

Mount Vernon currently has more than 44,000 unique voter IDs, over 31,000 of them registered as Democrats and just 2,800 as Republicans, election data shows. <\/p>\n

That\u2019s enough political clout to swing local, county, state, and congressional races, making Mount Vernon a must-win city in regional elections \u2014 prompting pols to handle the city\u2019s scandals with kid gloves.<\/p>\n

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The city has long been plagued by controversy that typically draws little condemnation \u2014 two recent mayors, Ernie Davis and Richard Thomas, were forced to leave office mid-term after being hit with federal tax evasion and state grand larceny charges, respectively.<\/p>\n

Several Mount Vernon cops have also gotten in hot water, including a bust in April that accused one officer of stealing more than $800,000 from an out of state company, and another was accused of tipping off a Suffolk County gang member to an investigation.<\/p>\n

Chase Lackard, 20, is charged with attempted murder in a June 29 gang-related shooting in the Bronx. James Keivom for NY Post<\/p>\n

Lackard was fired immediately after her arrest, but Patterson-Howard and other prominent pols have largely failed to condemn the mind-blowing allegations. Questions have swirled about how she even got the job, with sources revealing the mayor and Lackard were members of the same sorority and were connected via a politically influential Baptist church leader in the community.<\/p>\n

Patterson-Howard has denied having a prior relationship to Lackard and her office said she passed a background check and passed, despite her husband having served time in prison on drug convictions.<\/p>\n

No county, state of federal officials have called for a probe into the hiring or aftermath despite sources revealing Lackard brough Mount Vernon cops with her in a 2023 visit to a Bronx hospital after her gangbanging son was shot in the chest during a confrontation on a city bus.<\/p>\n

Mount Vernon Mayor Shawyn Patterson-Howard said she only met Jennifer Lackard when she was hired by the city. USA TODAY Network via Reuters Connect<\/p>\n

Republican leaders, however, are not letting it slide. <\/p>\n

\u201cYet again, extreme liberal Democrats are protecting criminals over law abiding American citizens.\u201d White House spokeswoman Lauren Bis told The Post. <\/p>\n

Meanwhile, Republican pollster John McLaughlin said the scandal presents the GOP with a shot at gaining a bigger foothold in the Westchester County city.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt\u2019s an opportunity for Republicans,\u201d McLaughlin said. \u201cIt\u2019s an opening for Republicans to start a reform coalition in Mount Vernon. There are a lot of African-Americans in law enforcement who live in Mount Vernon who are not going to tolerate this behavior.\u201d<\/p>\n

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