Sam Gurwitt photo
Justin Farmer: More transparency, communication needed on hiring, crime incidents.
Hamden Councilman Justin Farmer is “tired of being over-policed and under-protected.”
Farmer expressed that sentiment during in a press conference held Tuesday morning to announce he plans to submit “common sense legislation” to deal with increased violence in town.
Farmer represents Hamden’s Fifth District, where two shootings and a home invasion have occurred over the course of three weeks.
The first would require that the Hamden Police Department report all major crimes, such as fatalities, kidnappings, and/or home invasions, that occur within the town back to elected officials and the broader community within a set timeframe.
Farmer recommended requiring a detective to call the Legislative Council member representing the district where the crime took place within 36 hours of the event.
Farmer said that keeping the council informed would allow them to more efficiently and effectively craft solutions to reduce or prevent similar tragedies from happening in the future.
A second ordinance would aim “to promote transparency and rebuild trust” in response to controversy and miscommunications that occurred after news got out that the Hamden Police Commission took under consideration an application from a former Bridgeport cop who had shot and killed a citizen in that city. (The officer was not hired in the end; click here to read a story by the New Haven Register’s Meghan Friedmann about a related protest.)
Farmer has repeatedly said that after three weeks of attempted dialogue amongn himself, other prominent community members, and the Hamden PD, “there is still no clarity on the hiring or promotion process.”
“To go three weeks without any dialogue is unacceptable,” he said, especially “when the price is so high as life and death.”
His proposed ordinance would require that all names of potential police hires be made public and stated in the minutes of relevant meetings held by both the Police and Civil Service Commissions.
The town or city where an officer was originally certified, Farmer said, should also be publicly stated, given that certification requirements vary by place.
In addition, Farmer is calling for public hearings to be held before any police officer is hired or promoted.
“There should be an opportunity for dialogue about the community’s trust in officers,” he urged.
Lastly, the policy would require, to the extent that extant law permits, that all contractual negotiations within the Police Department be made available to the public.
Farmer stated that he is working independently with attorneys to produce this legislation within the next two weeks.
“We’re not gonna agree on all the solutions,” Farmer said, “but at the end of the day, we should agree that the mission is to keep the public safe.”
Rhonda Caldwell, lead organizer of Hamden Action Now, Reverend Jack Perkins, senior pastor at Spring Glen Church, and Ala Ochumare, co-founder of Black Lives Matter New Haven, joined Farmer in emphasizing the need for greater transparency and communication between Hamden PD, the Legislative Council, and the broader community.
Farmer will hold another meeting to discuss public safety in Hamden this Friday, the 18th, at 6 p.m. To access the Zoom link, email him at [email protected].
Great work, Councilman Farmer!
Anyone with a knee-jerk reaction against these proposed ordinances should be willing and able to explain why public servants with as much broad authority and discretion as police should not be held to the highest standards of transparency (at a bare minimum).