Allan Appel Photo
Mayor Elicker Friday at Dunkin Donuts.
A decorated but beaten U.S. army vet walked into a Dunkin Donuts Friday looking for justice — from New Haven’s mayor.
They and other around them ended up talking about what justice looks like, in New Haven, and in America.
That emotionally charged exchange occurred at the a “mayor’s coffee hour” convened Friday morning at Dunkin Donuts on Foxon Boulevard. A dozen neighbors joined in on the klatching, a way, said Elicker, to get a sense of what’s on people’s minds.
It was the fifth informal coffee hour so far of Mayor Justice Elicker’s administration. At the event, Elicker also heard about undergrounding utility lines that make the city ugly to look at and increasingly vulnerable to damaging storms. He heard about the need for new sidewalks and more coherently organized bus stops. He heard about broken parking meters and about job creation.
And he heard about the crisis and challenge of affordable housing and the “molasses” pace at which some development projects are moving.
They were a range of issues and complaints as diverse as the round, square, glazed, and sprinkled treats at Dunkin’ Donuts.
The most fraught occurred midway during the hour and half gathering when Larry Rice politely but earnestly confronted the mayor.
“I lost my whole life, and the police officers who profiled me haven’t missed a paycheck,” Rice said.
The mayor with fellow DD-goer and former Fair Havener Morris Sutton.
He was referring to an “indecency” arrest in East Rock Park back in 2018 from which Rice subsequently was cleared.
According to a News 12 Connecticut story earlier this month, “Police records obtained by News 12 Connecticut show that Rice, a decorated U.S. Army veteran with a master’s degree in social work and no previous criminal record, was accused of performing a lewd act in front of schoolchildren near East Rock Park in New Haven in the summer of 2018. Officials say it was a classic case of profiling that led to his arrest.”
This father of five, a veteran, with a degree in social work, described his life as wrecked, despite all the charges having been thrown out.
Sitting around a congenial table at Dunkin Donuts with the mayor, Rice expressed not only profound anger at what had happened to him, but also doubts that a largely white New Haven police department could police a black community, and asked Elicker, on the spot, to do something about it.
Elicker listened carefully and then said, “What does justice look like to you?”
“An offer of a job and my being compensated.”
Other people around the table — including contractor Rodney Williams and Manuel Rivera, a vet like Rice and now studying urban policy at Quinnipiac University — chimed in with perspective and suggestions.
Looking empathetically at Elicker, Williams said, “There’s so much behind the [mayor’s] door, that nobody told you about.”
Shari Rahamim, Rodney Williams, and Doug Gray at the gathering.
Williams took issue with Rice’s blanket condemnation of the NHPD. “I’ve had best friends shot dead, and not by cops. We have got to stop killing,” Williams said.
Rice, paraphrasing Malcolm X, spoke about the relationship between the over-policing of black communities and the high incidence of crime in all too many black communities. Something is deeply, fundamentally broken, he contended, and it must be fixed.
The mayor, listening patiently, ascertained that Rice only a month ago has filed a complaint with the department’s Internal Affairs division. He promised to look into its status.
“The city of New Haven made of me a monster,” Rice continued. All the charges are dropped. How do I feed my kids right now? I do have a job but I can’t do it. I’m waiting for justice.”
“I can’t give you justice right now,” Elicker replied. But he repeated his commitment to look into the matter . He also spoke of the revival of the Civilian Review Board to monitor alleged police misconduct.
“They can’t deliver justice to a black man,” said Rice.
Even if the city gave you $5 million dollars, how could you enjoy it? asked Rivera, a 20-year Marine Corps vet, who is also receiving therapy at the VA in West Haven. He urged Rice to think of his kids and to apply for therapy at the VA, as he himself is receiving.
Rice listened to all this and then turned back to Mayor Elicker: “What’s justice look like for you?”
“It is a national story. My sense is that the majority of New Haven police are trying to do the right thing. But if there’s an officer who’s doing the wrong thing, they should be held accountable. These things are often more complicated,” Elicker responded.
“But I hear you that the justice system is unfair. I can’t fix your problem right now. And if I were you, I’d be thinking I’ve heard this kind of thing before. Still, I’ll look into it.”
Rice then rose and shook Elicker’s hand.
“If you show up at the next coffee,” said Elicker, “ask me if I’ve looked into it.”
does NHI have more info here? The details in the link state the police received a call that someone was performing a lewd act, they came to the school and search, and a 'witness' pointed out Mr. Rice. If that's the whole story, it's the witness, not the police, who racially profiled.