It's an internal struggle that was thrusted into a very public spotlight.

Members of the Syracuse Police Department find themselves at odds with their chief. They put those odds in public view during Saturday's Saint Patrick's Parade when only a handful of officers marched while dozens of others boycotted.

"You never want disputes in your police family to be lingering or long-standing,” said Syracuse Police Chief Kenton Buckner. “The dispute doesn't make me right. It doesn't make them wrong. It's just a dispute. I'm committed to doing the right thing as I always will be even when it's painful, even when it puts us out in the public where some of these things occur.”

"When this whole incident started with the parade and everything, my intention was to get his attention that the rank-and-file was upset with him and to just make sure he was aware of it and not get into any specifics. Now that he is twisting this to say this is over overtime and discipline, I feel compelled to speak to you today to set the record straight," said Jeff Piedmonte, Syracuse Police Benevolent Association President.

Piedmonte says the problem stems from Chief Kenton Buckner's comments and actions since appointed in December.

"There just seems to be a lack of respect for the police officers on a daily basis. As I said, at the beginning of his tenure here, I kept telling him you need to come into patrol. Ironically, that's the door. Stop into patrol and see the officers," said Piedmonte.

Tension rose last month after Buckner made a comment saying that some are rotten to the core and for those, they'd lose the privilege to work for the city and the force.

"It's reckless and irresponsible to make that statement when he doesn't know that we have those,” said Piedmonte “In the event he found them that would be a different story. He could then say, 'I got rid of that person.’ It was very upsetting to everyone here. I don't believe we have officers that are rotten to the core. I think we have officers that have made mistakes in the past that have been let go.”

Saturday, Chief Buckner said he understood that at times there will be disagreements and he hopes to resolve them. But for some officers on the street, they're hoping for a different result. 

"We're banking on that he's not going to be eligible to be the chief of police,” said Piedmonte. “He has 12-months to be certified through the Department of Criminal Justice Services to complete 460 to 480 hours of classroom work, physical training, physical assessment and we don't think he's going to be capable of getting all of this done to be qualified come December.”

In a statement, Syracuse Mayor Ben Walsh said, “Chief Buckner and members of our police department have tough jobs to do, and I appreciate their work. Change is difficult, but it needs to happen. It’s occurring across city government. I know Chief Buckner strongly supports our officers, and so do I. We all want what is best for the people of our city.”

Chief Buckner said he will discuss department with the media when the department talks about reorganization.