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Washington County DA warns of rising violence, urges state police substation after Greenwich barracks closure
Summary
District Attorney Tony Jordan told the Public Safety Committee that violent crime has increased, felonies are up 13% year-to-date, and the state police Greenwich barracks has been declared uninhabitable; he urged the committee chair to press NYS Police and legislators for a replacement substation to address response-time concerns.
Tony Jordan, Washington County District Attorney, told the Public Safety Committee on June 30 that the county is seeing a modest rise in overall crime accompanied by “a dramatic increase in the amount of violence.” He said felonies are up about 13% year‑to‑date (185 felony cases) and that misdemeanors and domestic‑violence caseloads have also increased.
Jordan gave a more detailed breakdown of current caseloads: 153 open domestic‑violence matters, roughly 45 charged sex cases (including at least one involving a youth under 18 and a separate forcible‑rape allegation that included a gun), multiple large fraud investigations involving more than $1 million in alleged losses to residents, and two open murder cases expected to proceed to trial in the fall.
“Right now we do not have a state police barracks in the southern part of the county,” Jordan said, noting the Greenwich barracks was deemed uninhabitable and personnel relocated to Schuylerville. He called response time a concern and recommended the committee chair write to NYS Police command and the county’s state legislators to press for either remediation of the current facility or an alternate permanent location within the county.
The committee approved that course: Jordan had requested the chair write to state police leadership and representatives to stress the importance of a substation. Jordan also credited local efforts for reducing overdose fatalities and noted a shift in drug patterns, with crack and meth replacing some fentanyl/heroin incidents he previously saw.
Why it matters: Jordan portrayed the county’s public‑safety workload as both larger in scale and more violent in character than a year ago, and he tied part of the operational stress to a loss of local NYS Police coverage. The chair’s letter would be a formal, committee‑backed request that could prompt legislative or agency follow‑up.
What’s next: Jordan said he will continue to circulate monthly Advent Traffic Program reports to supervisors and the chair will send the requested letter to NYS Police command and state representatives.
