Ex-Giant from Queens embraces role as NYC probation officer

Retired football player Kory Blackwell went from Giants blue to NYPD blue before becoming a probation officer. Photo via Department of Probation

At 31, ex-NFL player Kory Blackwell faced a major career crossroads.

Injuries had slowed the veteran cornerback, who grew up in Queens Village and began his pro career with the Giants, forcing him to consider new opportunities. A player development consultant recommended he trade uniforms, going from Big Blue to NYPD blue. He took the officers’ exam and was accepted into the police academy.

“I policed my own communities,” said Blackwell, who worked in precincts in Southeast Queens and Far Rockaway. “I loved my job walking the beat and visiting different jurisdictions, but I felt there was more to community development.”

Blackwell studied social psychology at the University of Massachusetts and sought a job that was more proactive, he said. He worked for a time at a juvenile detention center and valued the relationships he built with young people there. “I learned a lot about human behavior and some of the things they were going through,” he said. “I realized that I suffered a lot of what they suffered.”

The city’s Probation Department recruited Blackwell, showing him a job that combined his interest in law enforcement and his goal of serving as a mentor. He said he connects with probationers by sharing his own experiences, including the murder of his brother and his proximity to crime while growing up in Queens Village and the Bronx in the 1980s. 

“Kids look at you as an authoritative figure and they can repel you, saying ‘This guy don’t know nothing about the street. He doesn’t experience what I experience,’” Blackwell said. “It’s very important to show them life happens to everybody. But in spite of it happening, are you going to be part of the problem or the solution?”

People are sentenced to probation as an alternative to incarceration after they are convicted of a crime. Unlike people on parole, they have not served time in prison after their conviction and they check in with their probation officer for a period of time established by a judge.

Blackwell said he empathizes with the teens and young adults he works with. He almost followed the same path.

A friend from high school always had nice things and abundant cash because his father “was heavy in the drug game,” Blackwell said. The friend also began dealing drugs and making money. 

“I said, ‘Yo, I want to do what you’re doing,’” Blackwell said. “It’s not like I was a bad kid, I was just influenced by my environment.”

His friend delivered a wake up call. 

“He said, ‘If you do this, I’m going to stop hanging out with you. I hang out with you because you’re normal, your cool, you play ball, you have a lot going for you,’” Blackwell recalled. 

“This world is different,” his friend told him. “You think it’s something it’s not.”

That perspective stuck with him and helped him focus on school and football, where he excelled. He also credits his mother’s support and involvement for his success. His childhood experiences now serve as a tool in his current job.

Probation leaders have taken notice, elevating Blackwell to a supervisory role and praising his commitment.

"On and off the gridiron, Kory Blackwell has always been a star," said Dalvanie Powell, president of the United Probation Officers Association. "He's determined, passionate about what he does, and always without a doubt someone who wants to bring out the best of everyone.”

After already making a few career changes, Blackwell, 47, has no plans to leave his current post.

“Life is still going to go on and we have to make sure the tools we give our kids ensure they can survive through anything,” he said.