Mayor, Police Union At Odds Over Breonna Taylor Fallout

Props to Justin for speaking truth. Shame on Florencio. Go figure a Police union guy is against any police accountability.

What is Coto talking about? Is he associating the New Have Police with the what happened in Louisville? Does he believe justice was served? I for one do not think in a case like this justice can be served at least not in the way the Mayor and the protestors think. Breonna was not a victim of an intentional act aimed against her. She is a victim of a poor police policy that clearly places the police and citizens at risk of being killed.

I don't expect the protestors to see this, but I do expect elected officials and Police Union leaders to see this dangerous flaw in No Knock Warrants.

Why does the NHPD insert itself into an event that occurred in another state?

Good for Cotto speaking up. I'm sure the rank and file are hurt that their mayor would declare "justice wasn't served" against officers who acted within the scope of the law. The mayor made it clear, then doubled down, that even if officers act within the law, he will hang them out to dry and demand prosecution if he doesn't like the law. Sure the Mayor was speaking of a specific incident in KY, but there's a real chance a similar incident could happen here.

Don't like the law, change it. Don't demand BS prosecution of those who followed it. That's Cotto's point.

Using his logic, Elicker should demand we give tickets to people going 25 in a 30 mph zone bc his preference is that "Twenty is Plenty".

I am mystified that Cotto is responding in this way. Florencio you are not representing your proud family and heritage. Put one of your female relatives in Brianna's place and rethink your comments. You have effectively placed our police officers in the same box as the cops in Louisville who shot blindly into an apartment with a closed curtain, killed an innocent public servant, and narrowly missed several other innocents including a child. Our police officers are far better than this and you owe them and the Mayor an apology. New Haven has the best cops in the country. Show some leadership and regret. You are better than this. I know you are. In the words of the late Ozzie Davis, "Do the right thing."

Fake news Florencio? This phrase sounds familiar I never expected to hear it from you.

@PK
Why does the NHPD insert itself into an event that occurred in another state?

Well,

Why do we have people illegally blocking our streets in New Haven over an event that happened in another state?

Why is our Mayor commenting on an event in another state?

Elicker's comments are ignorant of the facts and are nothing more than pandering to the mob. So Elicker thinks that if a cop is shot at or shot he/they can't return fire? He thinks what the 2 cops did who were found not to commit a crime criminal? Elicker continues to be a disappointment and personifies the problem with out of touch liberal elites. He allows people to break the law in the name of what he feels are good political choices for him. Cotto is right, Elicker should apologize for his unfounded and baseless statement.

And most national experts do not agree with Elicker or the fools who think the cops were wrong. Most experts who don't feel the need to pander say, although tragic, the cops were justified in there actions.

Keep protesting, the more you do it over everything the less it means.

Patricia Kane: Perhaps NHPD views the killers in Louisville as their brothers, so the union reflexively comes to their defense. Eve Ewing has an interesting piece in this month Vanity Fair, "Blue Bloods". Regarding police unions, she says, "This is a brotherhood. It abides no law but its own. It scorns the personhood of all but its brethren. It derides all creatures outside its own clan. And for that reason, is not only a hurdle impeding reform. It is the architecture of an alternate reality, one that seethes and bubbles just beneath the surface of our own. And it's a reality in which none of us are human." Ewing is extreme even for me, but "brotherhood" mentality of police does separate them from the communities they are paid to serve. Repeatedly telling themselves how special they are, it's no surprise they embrace the concept that Blue lives matter more. In fact, I believe NHPD has an admirable record on use of force. As far as the comments, Elicker should recognize that Taylor's killing was legal, and Cotto should recognize "legal" and "just" are not synonymous.

Just wow Cotto. Therein lies a huge barrier to improving police and community relations. That gang mentality is dangerous. The most dangerous part is he is leading. I bet there are many in law enforcement who feel just as Elicker does. Cotto needs to step down and outside policing for the betterment of the New Haven community.

Elicker is wrong (or is that redundant?). All the facts were given to a grand jury in Louisville. They could not find any chargeable offense committed by two of the officers. Crowds yelling in the streets, setting fires, looting stores, and shooting police, hoping to change the outcome of a grand jury that heard all the facts in the case, while they care not to study the facts themselves, is wrong headed. As far as Elicker is concerned, pandering to the crowd, will at best, work as well as it did for the Mayor of Portland, Oregon.

I have read several articles and reports that come down on both sides of the Breonna Taylor issue. One side says the cops should be arrested for murder/manslaughter and that the facts of the case were distorted or manipulated to paint the cops in a more favorable light. The other side offers that the police were victims of a poorly planned and poorly executed operation, but the tragic results of Ms. Taylor's death were not the premeditated (nor with racist intent) fault of the police who were actually on the scene. My first hope would be for people to accept the official version as related by the Kentucky AG, and then, if dissatisfied with this account, legally press for further information. To announce in public writings (as Elicker and others have done) and to protest against the police, as if one knows for certain what transpired, is to have minds made up prior to knowing all the facts and the complete story.

Is this the same Police Union that forced officers to illegally march through the streets of our fair city in a Union protest a few years back ? Yeah that's helpful, do as we say not as we do.

New Haven cops are not the problem. They are the solution.
Their methods of de-escalation are a great example of how policing should be handled !!!
They show more restraint than is actually necessary even while being shot at !!
It was Hamden PD that shot an unarmed citizen

Its the Union "politicians" that are creating a diversion from the real NATIONAL issues at hand.

The union should be ashamed of itself.
This personally changes my opinion of the NHPD.

Good work Cotto you made me a hater and I'm sure I am not the only one.

Without commenting on the Taylor case in specific, because I have not been able to review the entire investigation (nor has anyone else commenting here), I will state unequivocally that Murder is an exceedingly difficult charge to prove beyond a reasonable doubt due to the element of intent that accompanies every murder statute. I've spent many years debating this issue with the States Attorney's officer, some of those arguments were very public as some may remember. In the end, I always had to concede to the SA because their legal opinion was not only correct and legitimate, but ethically sound as well. What happened to Taylor was not murder. The dispute lies with where the fatal shot to Taylor emanated: in one instance it would be self defense, in the other it would be negligence. But in neither instance was it murder. This vital fact is in dispute, therefore a criminal charge regarding her death cannot be brought or sustained in court. There is a legal, ethical obligation not to prosecute in this instance. We should all learn that The Criminal Justice System is not a panacea for all the worlds wrongs. It's based on fact and fairness; not revenge. Neglecting the facts and arresting someone as a visceral response is not justice, it's vengeance. The Mayor, although well intentioned I assume, should have sought clarification before he began throwing around the M-word. He should also keep in mind that he is now the Mayor of The City of New Haven and the mayor is the representative for everyone, even the quiet people who don't block the streets chanting about perceived justice.

OhHum: Pandering to the crowd is working much better in New Haven than Portland, Oregon, or NYC, or many other cities. The worst New Haven has experienced is a brick through a window. I remember 1967, and it wasn't pretty. So far, New Haven has avoided a repeat of those terrible riots, while Portland (Oregon), Minneapolis, and NYC have burnt.

Yes, the same types of legal experts believe that the dozens of deaths and billions of dollars of damage caused by rioters can't be true because they call themselves "peaceful protests".

It's clear that facts do not matter to the the party that likes to call itself "the party of science".

It's never murder when the police kill. Prosecutors never have a problem charging civilians with murder. Prisons are filled with people who fired a lot less shots than these officers yet were charged with murder. Some of them might actually be defending themselves from being killed, unlike when police murder. Exactly why Qualified immunity must go. To only charge officer for bullets hitting a neighbor's apartment and not charge for bullets which actually killed Breonna is deeply insulting no matter how someone wants to spin the story and yes some of us did read enough details of the incident to have an idea what happened. Elicker said what most compassionate human beings would have said. It seems NHPD union head has very thin skin. To somehow make the injustice of Breonna's death about NHPD is so far fetched it might be a red flag someone may be due for mental health assessment..

Patricia

I am not a lawyer And don't know the constitution and law as well as you, so maybe you can tell us if everyone is barred from expressing opinions about things that happened in other states? Or does that only apply to groups that you do not support?

Cotto post is why the community doesn't support or trust his leadership. The healing process will start when the department remove him as the voice of the NHPD.

challenge: It WAS murder (third degree) when the African-American Minneapolis Officer Noor killed fair Justine Damond.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Shooting_of_Justine_Damond#Trial_and_conviction
Contrast, of course, the acquittal of the Hispanic officer who killed the African-American Philando Castile.

@1644,

The facts of those cases were as patently different as the races of those involved, hence the differing outcomes. Moreover, the murder 3rd charge in MN is uncommon to most state laws in that it does not require intent or premeditation as Mr. Valleca explained above.

grand juries arent flawless..Just becaseu a group of people have made a decision doesnt make it the right one or legal one perfect example for MANY years just being blackment you couldnt do things and people stood up to those juries and systems that said this is wrong. BREAONA was an innocent bystander in her own home! When Cotto jumps on the bandwagon he makes NHPD officers appear to part of a blind force who cosign wrong just becaseu they are officers just . I am NOT in any form or fashion an ECKLER supporter but a support him when he says there was a miss carriage of justice. I appreciate that he is standing in that truth becseu it gives the slightest indication that if his officers are right he will stand byu them but if they are wrong he will call it wrong! COTTO that is what millions are asking for! We are asking that if a cop is right you back him but if he is wrong you call him on his $!it! Being blind to the fact that he is in the same uniform as you is not good leadership! The officers was charged for endangering one set of people but not the one that was killed if that doesnt scream something is wrong with the system then perhaps you shouldnt have a uniform on let alone be president of a union that represents officers. to do right even when its easier to to get away with doing wrong is what OFFICERS are supposed to do and the UNION PRESIDENT SHOULD KNOW THIS

The officers did not murder Breonna Taylor. The officer who fired wildly into the apartment could have been charged with murder if it was his bullets that struck her, but apparently it was not, so they charged him with negligence - he was totally wrong!
If you were the two officers who entered the apartment, as your job required you to do, what would you have done when the suspect started firing at you? Apparently, most of you would have dropped your guns and put up your hands and pleaded for him to not kill you. Well, they chose an alternative route, and fired back. Breonna was standing in the hallway next to the suspect. Tragically, the wrong place at the wrong time - but not murder.
Whats wrong here is the no-knock warrant. We can argue all day about whether or not they knocked, and announced, because there is evidence on both sides, but we cant argue that they had a no-knock warrant so they didnt have to. The warrant created this ugly situation. The protests against no-knock warrants are justified. The protests that the officers should have been charged with murder are not.

missthenighthawks: I have also read that the warrant was originally "no-knock", but changed to "knock and announce". It's also pretty clear that there was not a lot to substantiate the warrant, and some sworn allegations in it were wrong. You are correct that the warrant was the cause of this misfortune, both for Taylor and the officer who was shot. We, and certainly Louisville and its judges, really need a higher bar before direct armed men to break into people's homes in the middle of the night. It's, also, been reported that the officers were undercover/not in uniform and lacked bodycams. This tragedy reminds me of the Sean Bell killing, where Mr. Bell, his senses likely deadened from club noise, drinking, and perhaps pot-smoking, found his car surrounded by a group of threatening, not-uniformed, armed men in a dark place.

When someone tells you who they are, believe them.

Dear Mayor Elicker--- the mess in NH is not enough to occupy your time? Or do you already have your eyes on higher office???

Mayor-- stay in your lane and serve the citizens of New Haven; you are not the mayor of Louisville.
Rapidly losing faith in a mayor who thinks he's mayor of the whole country and needs to mind everyone else's business

I'll bet that if you ask any good cop about discharging their weapon they'll tell you that one of the top things they're thinking about is where the bullet might go if they miss their target. If you ask them if they'd just fire into the darkness, they'd probably just laugh and shake their head.
The charge should have been depraved indifference.

robn: One officer did fire blindly from outside the apartment. His rounds were so poorly aimed, they entered neighboring apartments, resulting in some near misses. Had those rounds killed or injured someone, he could have been charged accordingly. Two other officers fired not randomly, but at the source of fire directed at them. The bizarre thing from a legal stand point is both the boyfriend and the cops had legal right to self-defense.

Cotto's absolutely correct with his words regarding Elicker's statement. The reciprocity between the Mayor and police in the city must always be tight. If the Mayor disagrees with the findings of alleged criminal acts by police officers in New Haven or elsewhere, that should be noted in private. The city can ill-afford to have [any] separation between these two factions over unrelated issues.

In my view, there are two narratives at play in this convenient assertion by Elicker. 1. This is a popular issue nationwide, and since there are large crowds of voters assembling, he felt the need to give the appearance that he too shares their pain, frustration and belongingness. And 2. He's sending a circuitous message to the NHPD; that if they were ever embroiled in a controversy analogous to anything like this, don't count on him!

A Mayor that behaves in this manner, is dangerous all the way around. Because his decisions are solely steeped in political expediency!!

Let me end with this, personally, I believe the killing of this sister was unjustifiable, immoral, senseless and unforgettable. And to arrest one officer for missing, but not arrest an officer for killing the innocent is repugnant!

Brian is correct in stating some of the comments are politically motivated yet not as he is insinuating. There are people upset that Elicker is mayor and so no matter what he does he is painted as a villain. Elicker is free to speak his mind. Being a government official should not diminish one's integrity or sense of right and wrong. Being mayor should not equate to total alignment with police. Elicker felt as you do about the Taylor injustice and he has every right to voice it. It was not an indictment against NHPD. Many of us in New Haven are hoping if NHPD is involved in misconduct Elicker will not feel the need to stand with wrongdoing. He should always be guided by what is right and not what is popular. That's what courageous people do. Something the former mayor should have exhibited. It's time to stop maligning Elicker simply because he is the mayor. He is in that position because the majority of the community was not happy with the mayor they had. Time to move forward.

@ Challenge,

Because you say I'm incorrect doesn't make it so.

It doesn't upset me in the least that Elicker is the mayor. The views I have toward him existed before he became mayor. Moreover, if Elicker felt this way about the Breonna Taylor killing previously, then why are we just now hearing from him surrounding it?

"He should always be guided by what is right and not what is popular. That's what courageous people do." Give me a break!! He railed on Harp about her tax increase (and he was correct to do so in my view), and 15 minutes after he was sworn in as Mayor, he raised them some more. That action didn't take COURAGE, that action took blatant hypocrisy and artful lying.

"He is in that position because the majority of the community was not happy with the mayor they had." The majority of the small number of voters would be more accurate.

"It's time to stop maligning Elicker simply because he is the mayor." Did you say that to him when he derided his opponent in the last election?

Know this, if and when I feel the need to criticize your messiah, I will with no hesitation!!!

Brian, your comment about Elicker being my Messiah simply because I supported his response to the Taylor injustice made for great comedy. Are you an undercover stand up comedian ? Please give us more.

@ Challenge,

Nice try! But I suggest you find someone gullible enough to take your bait.