Interfaith Gathering Calls For Cop Accountability, Transparency

Organize community walks through neighborhoods. Broaden the make-up of the Police Commission. Hire more cops of color. Investigate complaints more quickly and transparently.

Those were among the solutions proposed by 70 people who came together Thursday night for an interfaith brianstorming session on how to make Hamden’s police force more accountable for misconduct and racial insensitivity.

The gathering, hosted at the Spring Glen Church, was held in response to recent allegations of Hamden police brutality and racial injustice. One involved a traffic stop which ended with two Hamden police offers threatening to call Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) and shoot two Latino men. The second occurred April 16, when a Hamden police officer and a Yale officer fired 16 rounds at a car in New Haven’s Newhallville neighborhood with two unarmed occupants, Stephanie Washington and Paul Witherspoon III, wounding Washington. Both incidents sparked protests and pushes for policy change.

Senior Rev. Jack Perkins Davidson of Spring Glen United Church-Christ, Rev. Brian R. Bodt of Hamden Plains Methodist Church, Rabbi Brian Immerman of Congregation Mishkan Israel, and Kristen Estabrook, associate organizer for Congregations Organized for a New Connecticut (CONECT), led the discussion Thursday night.

Three members of the Hamden Legislative Council, Justin Farmer, Brad Macdowall, and mayoral candidate, Lauren Garrett, were in attendance along with Republican mayoral candidate, Jay Kaye. 

Davidson set the tone by providing context expressing frustration over the sluggish response of authorities in the April 16 shooting.

“Many Hamden officials have told me they don’t have the power or authority to do something, but we always have the power and the authority to create change in our communities,” Davidson said. Thus, he said, the goal of this conversation at the church was to ​“help learn why trusting the process doesn’t work.”

“The process seems to be flawed. There was absolutely no investigation until we protested, which is especially concerning as we pay their salaries and empower them to do their job. Thus, we must hold our police accountable,” said Rhonda Caldwell, a leader of Hamden Action Now. Hamden Action Now formed on in April and held rallies with Black Lives Matter throughout the spring.

Caldwell expressed outrage that that in the aftermath of the Washington shooting, the town of Hamden went ​“back to business as usual.” Initially, the episode of police brutality was not even on the Hamden Police Commission agenda. ​“That is an insult on the decency of Hamden residents. We need to elect folks to change the system and it’s time Hamden residents hold leaders accountable,” she said.

Rhonda Caldwell described a recent instance when she faced harassment and racial profiling in Hamden. She and her daughter, who at the time was nine, were out canvassing for a political candidate when a white resident called the police. To stay safe, Caldwell and her daughter left the neighborhood immediately. Caldwell, who is black, said she now advises young people to stay off the streets after dark, not in fear of profiling.

When Farmer was out collecting cans for a church food drive seven years ago with several black fellow church congregants in a largely white Hamden neighborhood, he said, alarmed residents called police. Five police cars showed up to investigate their ​“suspicious” activity.

In Hamden, activists have been pushing to create a civilian review board to undertake independent investigations of alleged misconduct, noted Justin Farmer. He also spoke about the successful push to pass a new state law, sponsored by New Haven State Sen. Gary Winfield, that will require local governments to collect data on policing, including car chases and civilian injuries. The bill also requires any footage must be released to the public three days after an incident.

Need To Reach Out

“If you’re in this room you have it. So how do we undo it?” Caldwell challenged the gathering, as people broke into smaller brainstorming groups.

In one discussion, Kevin Menescardi, a graduate student and teacher at Southern Connecticut State University, noted that he was one of the few millennials in attendance. He attributed this to the missed opportunity to harness the ​“coolness factor.” He suggested organizing similar discussions at schools.

Though the Hamden police department and interim chief did not receive a formal invitation to the discussion, Retired Rev. Barbara Libby said, she was disappointed no police showed up anyway. She agreed with others in her discussion group that having someone from the force attend would be a ​“no brainer.” ​“Conversation is the best way to keep this momentum as it builds stronger relationships. It creates trust in the community when people are no longer just strangers,” she said.

Rev. Davidson made the suggestion to organize group walks through different neighborhoods to overcome fear of certain locations. Councilman Farmer too agreed that connecting a story, or positive personal experience with a place, is effective in breaking down prejudice.

Rhonda Caldwell underscored the importance of increasing diversity in the police department. For Caldwell, this is especially imperative as, ​“Hamden is obviously and blatantly divided.”

Councilman Farmer informed the audience that police officers rotate in taking on roles in internal affairs. He argued that that ​“creates a sense of distrust and bias in the work.” Creating a civilian review board would help combat that distrust, he argued. Farmer suggested it be an elected body, perhaps including individuals with a background in psychology.

Community organizer Kerry Ellington, a leader of the protests following the April 16 shooting, mentioned the current Hamden Police Commission has only five members and does not meet in the summer, due to short staffing and family vacations. ​“Police violence doesn’t take a break in the summer,” she noted. In response to this, Councilman Farmer proposed to extend the commission to nine members.

Farmer said he also hopes to create a standing body to oversee police contracts, and allow residents of other districts outside Hamden to report complaints about Hamden officers.

To build on this discussion, a candidate roundtable is planned at the Spring Glen Church on Thursday, June 20, at 5:30.