To the Editor:

I grew up with a parent in law enforcement and know firsthand the kind of bravery and selflessness that’s required to be a good officer of the law. The Albany County Sheriff Department is, for the most part, full of these kinds of deputies. They do their jobs well. They serve and protect their community and they do so in a way that allows us to trust them and the laws they uphold.

In my opinion, Albany County Sheriff’s Deputy Phillip Milano is not one of these good officers of the law. He repeatedly abuses the power given to him by his badge, victimizing and harassing a community who has come to know him as a threat, rather than a protector.

This abuse of power was especially evident to me as I watched a video of Deputy Milano confronting and subsequently tasing, tackling, and arresting my non-resisting 22-year-old brother. He and his friends are frequent subjects of Deputy Milano’s questionable policing tactics. My brother had the nerve in this case to stand up for himself and his friends.

If, as a sheriff’s deputy, you are so threatened by an unarmed 22-year-old who is visibly more level-headed and in control of the stressful situation you created, that you will resort to using ridiculously excessive force in order to save face, I can’t help but wonder why you became a officer of the law in the first place.

My brothers and I grew up respecting, valuing, and honoring the men and women who committed themselves to protecting our rights and lives, knowing — through our dad’s example — that we could entrust them with that kind of power. I criticize Deputy Milano’s actions because his policing does not measure up to the integrity of the badge he wears.

Sara Dimmitt

New York

Editor’s note: See related story.