The city of Albany has been without a police chief since September: critics say former Chief James Tuffey changed the way the city is patrolled, moving away from "community policing". Police spokesman Jim Miller says there are different philosophies when it comes to "community policing" - over in Schenectady County, District Attorney Bob Carney credits the city's Public Safety Camera Project as a crime deterrent. Carney and city officials jointly announced this morning that the camera project is being expanded into additional neighborhoods.

In a study released in November by CQ Press which analyzed FBI data of 393 municipalities nationwide for the frequency of reported violent crimes, the city of Albany placed 94th safest, while the town of Colonie ranked safest of all at #393. Jim Miller urges Albany residents to go online and view crime statistics for themselves. All sides agree that successful policing is greatly enhanced by community interest and involvement, which observers note has been growing steadily over the last decade.

Officials from RPI in Troy and Union College were invited to comment for this story, but were not available to do so.