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Ed Weber, a former officer in Syracuse University’s Department of Public Safety, is running for New York State Assembly.

Weber, a Republican, is challenging incumbent Bill Magnarelli (D-Syracuse) for New York’s 129th Assembly District, which encompasses the towns of Van Buren and Geddes and multiple neighborhoods in Syracuse, including University Hill and the Northside. His agenda calls for repealing New York state’s 2019 bail reform act and improving relations between law enforcement and community residents.

“The citizens of any community should be the eyes and ears for the law enforcement,” Weber said.

Weber, who retired from the department last year, has served as town councilor and deputy town supervisor in Geddes since 2016. But before starting his career in local politics, he spent 46 years in law enforcement, including 18 years as a senior detective for DPS.

In 2013, lightning struck Weber and his partner, Stanley Prue, while the two were patrolling on South Campus. After the strike, Weber rushed to Prue’s side and discovered that he was barely breathing and called for help.

Weber later received an award for his response to the strike.

“It was a great honor to help someone out that was in such a need that he could have died,” Weber said.

DPS declined to comment on Weber’s campaign, citing its policy not to comment on political candidates.

Magnarelli, Weber’s challenger, has served in the Assembly since 1999 and is running for his 12th term in office. He has supported legislation surrounding women’s health care coverage and expanded an insurance program for senior citizens during his time in office.

From the time he graduated high school, Weber knew he wanted to serve his community. After taking law enforcement classes at Onondaga Community College, he came to believe the best way to do that was to become a police officer.

After working for the Onondaga County Sheriff’s Department, Weber said becoming a DPS officer allowed him to get to know students and faculty in the SU community on a more personal level.

“What I really enjoyed was the students themselves and the faculty, getting to know them and what their needs are,” Weber said. “In the regular law enforcement job, you don’t get to know too much.”

If elected, Weber wants to tackle issues related to law enforcement. He believes communities need to become more proactive in addressing the underlying issues that contribute to crime rather than only responding to crime when it happens.

Weber, who grew up on the Northside of Syracuse, said he also wants to implement more diversity training for Syracuse Police Department officers and review police use of force policies in the state of New York.

“You should put yourself in that person’s shoes and figure out a way that you can help them,” Weber said. “If you talk the situation out, you aren’t going to get hurt and the perpetrator isn’t going to get hurt.”

Weber said the passage of New York’s Criminal Justice Bail Reform Act convinced him to run for office. The legislation, which was enacted in New York state last year, eliminated cash bail for people held before trial.

Supporters of the law contend bail reform has helped reduce mass incarceration in New York state and offered a way out of pretrial detention for low-income detainees who couldn’t otherwise afford bail. Weber, though, feels the state passed the act without sufficient input from local law enforcement.

Although New York has already rolled back parts of the law, Weber said it should be fully repealed. He wants to form a committee consisting of police officials, district attorneys, other government officials and community members to determine how cash bail should work in the state.

Weber said he recognizes that each community has different needs, and he wants to be receptive and open to hearing those needs and finding a solution.

Susan LaFex, who serves with Weber on the Geddes town council, said Weber is a “good listener” and respectful to everyone, including those he disagrees with, LaFex said.

“He’s extremely aware of who he works for, which is the residents,” LaFex said. “When residents call or initiate an email, he always responds to them. He’s a good listener and a good speaker.”

Weber also wants to create a program to encourage young adults, including SU students, to become involved in local politics, he said.

“We need change periodically throughout our lives in government. We can’t have the same person in with some stale ideals,” Weber said.

Published on November 1, 2020 at 9:13 pm

Contact Sarah: scalessa@syr.edu | @sarahalessan