CORNING, N.Y. (WETM) – The City of Corning is unable to readily provide shooting statistics and other crime data due to limitations with the police department’s record-keeping system.

On June 26th, I submitted three freedom of information requests from the Corning Police Department involving gunfire incidents in the city.

  • Yearly breakdown of total shooting incidents reported by the Corning Police Department from 2017 through 2022. Please provide how many shootings were fatal (per year). Please provide how many shootings resulted in injuries, (per year).
  • Breakdown of shooting incidents reported by the Corning Police Department for the first 6 months of 2023. Please provide how many were fatal (per month). Please provide how many resulted in injuries, (per month).
  • Yearly breakdown of firearms recovered by the City of Corning Police Dept. from 2017 to 2022. Please provide a description of the type of firearms recovered (handguns, rifles, etc)

In a phone call Tuesday, Corning Police Chief Kenzie Spaulding told 18 News the department doesn’t use an “incident based” records system that is easily searchable. Chief Spaulding says compiling the information would require reviewing every case and would take too much time.

Corning Police Chief Kenzie Spaulding

I also reached out to Corning City Manager Mark Ryckman. In a phone call, Mr. Ryckman told me it was the first time he was hearing about the issue. Mr. Ryckman declined an on-camera interview and referred our questions back to Chief Spaulding.

Corning City Manager Mark Ryckman

Chief Spaulding told 18 News the department has been looking to modernize its database for several years. The Chief says she wants it to be closer to what is currently used by Stueben County. In a phone call, Steuben County Sheriff Jim Allard told me different departments use different databases. Sheriff Allard says there is a “lack of data sharing” between police agencies due to the patchwork of databases.

Sheriff Allard says the goal is to create a county-wide “universal” database system. The County hopes to upgrade its 911 center within a year. The goal is to eventually have all law enforcement agencies use that same system. Sheriff Allard says the project is still in its early stages, and it’s too early to provide a timetable for completion.

Steuben County Sheriff Jim Allard