Homicide In The Hill

We got out of that nightmare just in the nick of time...Lt. Minardi must b terribly missed.

While we fritter away our time and money removing statues and scrutinizing police and arguing over the former and latter; people are dying at the hands of other people around New Haven.

How many of the deaths and shootings are related to the illegal drug trade? If drugs were decriminalized and regulated and taxed heavily, and the taxes were used to pay for substance abuse treatment and rehabilitation and mental health care, would the violent crime related to it end? We have to ask if the failed war on drugs creates this violence, and if the prohibition was to end, would the criminal activity associated with the buying and selling of drugs end as well? If you look at the history of illegal alcohol and the decriminalization of selling and buying alcohol and the rise and fall of the crime associated with it, I think it would be clear.

Uggghhh CityYankee could you let [i] one [/i] article about an act of violence in this city go by without trying to tie it to protests & calls for police reform? Please? Just... search deep within yourself and make an honest effort. Once you've done that, if you'd then like to discuss state/local policies and their relationship to violence, you should start by talking about lead abatement, firearms access, drug criminalization, etc -- you know, things with mountains of evidence tying them to violence. Otherwise, step off your soapbox and stop sucking the air away from solution-oriented folk.

Heather c criticizes what she calls the war on drugs. Forgetting that almost all info coming into police about street and other types of drug selling is called in by citizens who are sick and tired of their quality of life being ruined by dealers, their customers and the street crime caused by this activity. Now a citizen would be lucky if a cop gets out of the cruiser to do anything.

Direct result of spineless politicians who never back officers and citizens being critical with zero knowledge about what police do.

Support law enforcement
Blue lives matter
So does everyone else but everyone else don't protect us

@ethanjrt-- I did offer a solution-- keep your eyes on the prize and don't be distracted by statues and fighting over the past again. Everything is connected, as you say. I see a different connection than you do. I disagree with much of what you offer as solutions but I am with you for really reforming police departments to deal with off- the -rails police officers. Your solutions don't look far enough ahead to see what the long-term consequences are and I question whether they are in fact real solutions.

See- this forum IS a soapbox and I can be on mine and you can be on yours. I like to read what people think and am happy to see some diversity of opinion blossoming amongst the commenters. Just because you disagree doesn't mean I have to be shut down. Let's make our case and learn! Cancel culture is not welcome here and I hope it never is.

Chris246- how frequently do neighbors call the police about a liquor shop or medical marijuana shop for quality of life issues or violence associated directly with the shop? And when the shop has violations like selling to minors or allowing drunks to lounge around outside, they are fined and repeat offenders lose their license and are shut down.
I am proposing that if you decriminalize and regulate the industry, you destroy the illegal drug trade, and therefore the crime associated with its illegality. And when you funnel the tax income to mental health care and substance abuse care you reduce the number of people whose lives are destroyed by drugs.
By the way, I don't do drugs or alcohol or even smoke tobacco, so it's not a personal issue for me for usage, but unfortunately I've had people I've known who were shot or killed or addicted directly as a result of the illegal drug trade. I'm tired of the violence, I'm tired of the people being imprisoned, I'm tired of the lack of mental health care and substance abuse rehab care, and the number of people's lives being disproportionately impacted by the illegal drug trade economy.