A disgraced former Mount Vernon police official accused of helping her gang-affiliated son carry out a botched shooting had close ties to the Democratic mayor whose administration put her in a lucrative city job, according to new reports.
Jennifer Lackard, 49, was fired Tuesday after prosecutors charged her, her husband and their 20-year-old son, Chase Lackard, in connection with an alleged June 29 drive-by shooting in the Bronx.
Now questions are mounting over how Lackard landed a $125,000 position running Mount Vernon’s newly created police Wellness Unit despite having no traditional law enforcement background.
Mount Vernon Mayor Shawyn Patterson-Howard hired Lackard in 2020. City officials confirmed Thursday that the two women are sorority sisters, with sources saying both belong to Delta Sigma Theta.
The pair also attend Grace Baptist Church in Mount Vernon, an influential congregation whose pastor, the Rev. Franklyn Richardson, has longstanding political connections in the heavily Democratic city.
Sources reportedly suggested Richardson may have helped Lackard secure the position, though a spokesperson for the pastor declined to comment.
It remains unclear whether Lackard was the only person considered for the job or whether her connection to Patterson-Howard played any role in the hiring.
The mayor’s office denied that Patterson-Howard had a personal relationship with Lackard before or during her employment.
“There was no personal relationship between Jennifer Lackard and Mayor Shawyn Patterson-Howard either prior to or during Ms. Lackard’s employment with the City of Mount Vernon,” a rep for the mayor’s office said in a statement Thursday.
“Ms. Lackard was hired by former Police Commissioner Glenn Scott following the city’s established hiring process,” the statement said. “The City has no further comment at this time.”
But a photograph posted to Facebook reportedly shows Patterson-Howard and Lackard smiling with their arms around each other at an event.
POLL: Ilhan Omar Now Claims She’s Broke – Do You Believe Her?
The mayor has defended the original hiring decision, saying Lackard’s roughly 15 years of experience in mental health and substance abuse services made her qualified to help run the Wellness Unit.
Patterson-Howard also said Lackard underwent a “rigorous background check,” and maintained that her husband’s prior federal drug conviction did not disqualify her.
The Wellness Unit was created to help Mount Vernon officers respond to calls involving people suffering from mental health crises or intoxication.
🚨NEW: New York police official accused of driving getaway car for her son after gang-related shooting
Prosecutors say Chase Lackard, 20, fired multiple shots at a suspected rival gang member in June before leaving the scene in a car driven by his mother, Jennifer Lackard… pic.twitter.com/zECNeLINYp
— Unlimited L’s (@unlimited_ls) August 6, 2026
The department itself recently faced scrutiny after officers responding alongside the unit to a barricaded 58-year-old man ultimately shot and critically wounded him.
But Lackard’s own legal troubles have now placed far more attention on City Hall.
Prosecutors allege Jennifer and James Lackard drove their son to the Bronx Hall of Justice on June 29, where Chase had a scheduled court appearance connected to one of several pending gun cases.
After leaving court, authorities say Chase climbed into his parents’ Chrysler Pacifica, changed clothes and remained inside while the family circled the area.
When an alleged gang rival was spotted, prosecutors say Chase fired from the vehicle but missed his intended target.
His mother allegedly drove the vehicle away afterward.
All three family members were indicted on attempted murder, conspiracy, attempted assault and weapons charges.
Chase is described by authorities as a reputed member of the “Slutty Gang” and was already facing multiple gun cases in the Bronx and Manhattan.
Jennifer and Chase were arrested Tuesday at their Bronx home. James Lackard later surrendered to the NYPD on Thursday.
Chase was ordered held without bail. Jennifer posted $75,000 cash bail or a $150,000 bond Thursday, while James was held on $150,000 cash bail or a $300,000 bond.
The Lackards previously founded Ivy House Center for Self-Sufficiency, a North Carolina nonprofit that worked with criminal defendants facing mental health and substance abuse issues. Jennifer served as CEO, while James sat on the advisory board before the organization lost funding.
🚨BREAKING:
The common denominator of black criminal strikes to Mount Vernon, New York Police Department
Mount Vernon, NY Deputy Police Commissioner Jennifer Lackard arrested — accused of driving the getaway car for her gang-member son after a shooting.
Prosecutors say… pic.twitter.com/b8gP6GwNKg
— GRANDPA’s FREE ADVICE (@GOP_is_Gutless) August 5, 2026
James Lackard was convicted on federal drug charges in the late 1990s and served prison time.
Jennifer later returned to New York, founded another nonprofit called Re-Entry Link LLC and joined Bronx Community Board 9 before landing the Mount Vernon position.
A neighbor said the arrests stunned residents who knew Lackard primarily as a working professional.
“The whole block is talking,” a family neighbor told The Post Thursday. “I don’t know when that good girl went bad. The husband, I don’t even really know where he came from. He just showed up a few years ago, and most of us didn’t even know she had a son, a 20 year old.
“I’m shocked,” she said. “The whole building is shocked. We just know Jennifer as getting up and going to work. She should know better than anyone. What made you think you are going to get away with this?”
Mount Vernon, a city of roughly 72,000 bordering the Bronx, has long been a Democratic stronghold.
Now the case is raising uncomfortable questions for the city’s political leadership about how Lackard landed a six-figure public safety job, what officials knew about her background and just how close she was to the mayor whose administration employed her.
POLL: Should Sanctuary Cities Be Banned From Federal Funding?
