City updated Hogan status: ‘Resigned for cause,’ can’t be police officer

By Cathy DeDe, Chronicle Managing Editor

Mayor Diana Palmer tells The Chronicle that under her administration the official status of Officer John Hogan III’s departure from the Glens Police force was changed from “resigned” to “resigned under pressure from disciplinary actions.”

The change was made on February 3, The Chronicle confirmed with the State Division of Criminal Justice Services, or DCJS.

“Yes,” the DCJS confirmed when asked if the updated status means Mr. Hogan is no longer eligible to serve as a police or peace officer in the State of New York.

The official term is “decertified.”

The DCJS website explains, “A police or peace officer’s basic training certificate is immediately invalidated” when the officer resigned or retired “subsequent to, or in connection with, allegations of misconduct.”

Officer Hogan was accused by the PBA last July of stealing $5,000 when he was its treasurer. State Police investigated and charged him with petit larcency on Dec. 2. On the same day the case was resolved with Officer Hogan making restitution of $6,000 to the PBA and pleading guilty to disorderly conduct, a violation not considered a crime. The court record was sealed.

The Chronicle asked Mayor Palmer about the matter in a meeting Monday afternoon. “All that happened was before I was mayor,” she said.
“I had no knowledge of it as Council member. It was not discussed with us.

“Since I have been Mayor, though, I’ve been trying to get up to speed.”

“There’s two separate issues,” she said: “The officer’s employment with the City, and the grievance between the PBA and the officer.

“The City’s interest was severing employment with the officer. That also happened before I was Mayor.

“What I learned after is that when you report the reason for removal…you have to select a category of how he was terminated, so DCJS can consider whether they decertify him.”

Mayor Palmer said that when the information regarding termination was originally sent, Police Chief Jarred Smith indicated only that Officer Hogan resigned.

“In talking with DCJS, they asked to make sure we had checked the right thing,” she says. “There’s a caveat that says, if you resigned under pressure from disciplinary actions, it has to be noted that way.”

Mayor Palmer clarified with an email statement on Tuesday, “Based on what I have learned so far, it is accurate that Officer Hogan was not facing disciplinary action in the City at the time of his resignation.” She wrote, “Chief Smith was operating under the belief that resignations should be reported to DCJS as such.

“Information discovered later indicated that his resignation should have been reported to DCJS differently, so Chief Smith promptly took steps to amend the characterization with DCJS.”

In our in-person interview, the Mayor said, “Our City attorney Taylor (Basford) reviewed the language with Chief Smith and our labor attorney, and they decided it should be submitted the other way, and so we have changed that.”

Asked why a City press release was posted and then removed the day after Mr. Hogan pled guilty in City Court to disorderly conduct and the case was closed, Mayor Palmer said she was told, “Part of the reason they took the City press release down is because the Labor Council (of the AFL-CIO union) advised that the case was sealed and they were not supposed to be discussing it.”

“Again,” Mayor Palmer said, “I wasn’t a decision maker at that point. As far as I understand, the PBA who uncovered this reported it to the State Police immediately and wanted full accountability.”

Mayor Palmer said she is not clear whether former Officer Hogan was eligible for any accrued benefits after the City stopped paying him after October 31.

Mr. Hogan is not yet listed on the state’s online public database of decertified officers. The database has not been updated since April 2025.

DCJS representative Aaron Cagwin told The Chronicle, “Following the unprecedented Department of Corrections and Community Supervision illegal work strike in 2025, DCJS received a significant volume of submissions that required careful review and analysis….

“That review is nearing completion, and we anticipate updating the public decertification list shortly.”

Chief Smith had not responded by press time to a request for comment.

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