When the people of New York elected Letitia James, they hoped she would bring both compassion and accountability to the state’s highest law-enforcement office. She promised to fight for the voiceless, protect the vulnerable, and bring justice where it had too often been denied. Yet under her watch, a disturbing pattern has emerged—one that reveals not just tragic outcomes but a complete failure of leadership.
From New Rochelle to Buffalo, and now with the death of Daniel McAlpin, New York’s top cop has presided over case after case where mentally ill or emotionally distressed men were shot and killed by police. Each time, her office reviewed the incident, issued a lengthy report, and concluded the same way: prosecutors “could not disprove justification beyond a reasonable doubt.” Each time, officers walked free. Each time, another family buried their loved one without justice.
A Systemic Pattern — and a Familiar Excuse
The most recent case, the killing of Daniel McAlpin, shows in detail how broken the system truly is. McAlpin’s mother called 911 in September 2022 for help, not harm. Her son was having a mental-health crisis. He was delusional but nonviolent. He asked officers to leave so he could “stay calm.”
Instead of mental-health professionals, an armed tactical team entered his home with AR-15 rifles and Tasers. Within minutes, McAlpin lay dead on his floor. The Attorney General’s Office later ruled the killing justified because the trooper “could not be disproven” in his claim that he feared for his life.
That decision was not based on evidence of necessity — it was based on the lowest legal standard possible. The AG’s report acknowledged that the trooper had not received any mental-health crisis training since 2016, yet the Attorney General made no recommendations to address that statewide deficiency.
This same pattern played out in New Rochelle, where Jarrel Garris, a 37-year-old Black man, was shot and killed in 2023 during an encounter with police. Officers claimed Garris had grabbed another officer’s gun — a claim the bodycam footage directly contradicted. On the recording, you can clearly hear the female officer saying, “My gun is here,” while pointing to her holster. Despite that evidence, no charges were filed — not even for manslaughter.
The message this sends is chilling: an officer can make a fatal mistake, contradict the evidence, and still be shielded from accountability — while a family is left shattered and a life is gone. Cops are not trained to make fatal mistakes and walk away; they are trained to protect life. Yet under Letitia James’ watch, fatal mistakes have been justified as policy.
A Failure of Oversight from the Top Cop
The greatest failure here is not just that people died — it’s that the Attorney General has refused to lead.
Letitia James is the top law enforcement officer in New York State. When the same operational deficiencies recur again and again — lack of crisis-intervention training, absence of mental-health professionals on scene, escalation rather than negotiation — it is her responsibility to correct them.
Her office has the authority to do more than close cases. It can issue binding recommendations to the Governor, the Division of Criminal Justice Services, and the State Police. It can call for mandatory crisis-intervention training for every officer in New York. It can advocate for legislation requiring mental-health specialists to accompany police on all wellness calls.
But perhaps the biggest missed opportunity came after the murder of George Floyd in 2020, when then-Governor Andrew Cuomo issued an executive order requiring every police department in New York State to conduct a comprehensive review of its policies on use of force and submit those reports to the Attorney General’s Office. The directive stated that the AG would compile those findings and release a statewide set of best practices for the use of force and deadly force.
Those recommendations were never issued. Under Letitia James’ leadership, the promise of statewide reform died in her office. Instead of using that mandate to create standardized training, accountability systems, and crisis-intervention protocols, she allowed the moment to fade into political silence.
And under her watch, more mentally ill men have been killed by officers untrained in mental-health de-escalation. It seems her office found it more popular to talk about Donald Trump than to make sure families calling for help during a mental-health crisis could trust that properly trained officers would show up — not executioners with badges.
Selective Justice and Political Comfort
Letitia James has built her public reputation on high-profile political cases — lawsuits against Donald Trump, corporate investigations, and national headlines that bolster her image as a tough prosecutor. But when it comes to state violence against the poor, the mentally ill, or the Black, her office has remained silent or deferential.
It’s a disturbing double standard. She has the energy to chase Wall Street, but not to challenge the culture of force that exists in her own backyard. Her unwillingness to recommend change — not just in policing, but in policy — shows where her priorities truly lie: in political safety, not public safety.
The Real Cost of Silence
Behind every one of these “justified” killings is a grieving family who did everything right. They called for help. They trusted the system. They believed that in the State of New York, compassion still counted for something. Instead, they got body bags, press releases, and a justice system that treats the mentally ill as disposable.
Daniel McAlpin’s mother said it best: “The attorney general’s decision sends a troubling message to families across New York: when someone needs help, they may instead face force.”
That message is echoed in every Black and brown household caring for a loved one with mental illness. They know the risk. They know the system’s indifference. And they know that when tragedy strikes, no one in power will be held accountable.
The Importance of Competent Leadership
We cannot keep electing leaders who talk about justice but do nothing to deliver it. The lives of New Yorkers depend on competent leadership that values training, accountability, and compassion.
When families call 911 during a mental-health crisis, they should not have to fear that their loved one will end up dead. We cannot imagine the fear of a mother watching officers surround her child, hoping for help and praying it doesn’t end in bullets. That is the reality too many families live with in this state.
The only way to change that reality is through the ballot box — by demanding that our leaders fight for justice not only when it’s popular, but when it’s necessary. New Yorkers deserve leaders who will protect the vulnerable, not justify their deaths.
Until that day comes, the silence from our top cop will continue to echo louder than her title.
