Hartford residents demand action after June police incident – ​​NBC Connecticut

Frustration is growing in one Hartford community over the city's current ability to handle complaints against police. The complaint from a neighborhood in the north end is pending for the time being.

The incident caught on camera shows an officer calling the person contacting police a “snitch” while attempting to disperse a group of loiterers on the street.

The group of women who filed the complaint said they have been working for years to build a relationship with the city and police. But they say this incident feels like an erasure of years of progress toward strong community police bonds.

“Just letting them know that someone is here is a snitch,” the officer can be heard saying in the video.

The video is being reviewed by city officials.

The women organized with the Center for Leadership and Justice in Hartford and called the incident hurtful.

“We worked so hard on this issue and the police made it seem like they were in league with us to help us,” said a resident who lives in the neighborhood where the incident occurred.

She noted that she appreciates the work the city and Hartford police have done in recent years to protect her neighborhood, including work such as providing walk-beat officers and communicating with the neighborhood about concerns. But this incident damages trust.

“The whole trust thing is I feel like I don't even trust them,” she described.

Pastor AJ Johnson of the Center for Leadership and Justice supported her organization.

“I was upset and scared because it gave weight to people who shouldn't be where they should be,” Pastor Johnson said of the incident caught on camera.

When he saw the video, they decided to file a police report. That set off what he calls an arduous process to resolution.

“We constantly face obstacles,” Johnson said.

The group attempted to work directly with the department. The department offered mediation, a meeting between the women who filed the complaint and Pastor Johnson, as well as the officer, the interim chief and the mayor.

According to emails obtained by NBC Connecticut, discussions about mediation over who would be allowed to attend the conversation failed. The women wanted support in the room while they spoke with the officer and chief, but the department and city said only limited people were allowed in the conversation.

“Then you look to the Civilian Police Review Board for an answer and it doesn’t work,” Pastor Johnson said.

According to the city's website, the Civilian Police Review Board is a city agency that provides independent oversight of the police department.

The board has not met since April. According to the city, its inspector general resigned at that time, and around the same time the board fell below the minimum number of members required to meet. They take a typical two-month break in July and August.

“We're talking about the Civilian Police Review Board for officer-involved incidents, which doesn't meet or have the ability to review cases,” Pastor Johnson said.

According to recent data, the agency received about 70 complaints annually from 2020 to 2022. According to the city, the complaint data for 2023 and 2024 are not yet available.

“This is really at the core of our view on transparency and accountability in policing, and I think these meetings will be happening again very soon,” Mayor Arunan Arulampalam said.

The mayor said the board is a priority. They have an accepted offer with a new inspector general expected to start in November. A seventh member of the Civilian Police Review Board is also expected to be confirmed by the city around the same time, allowing meetings to begin again.

“This board continues to function and will continue to work as aggressively as before,” Mayor Arulampalam said.

The mayor said part of the delay in reviewing the incident was due to an attempt to mediate outside the usual channels. The city's last email to Pastor AJ Johnson was received on September 17th. However, he said the incident was back on track and could be reviewed once the board was able to take it up.

But Pastor Johnson and residents are frustrated that the complaint review mechanism has not worked and the lack of a mediation protocol has left them unable to find a resolution since June. They believe that delays only hurt the city and the police.

“What we most likely have is residents who are discouraged, walk away, and nothing ever gets resolved, leading to continued distrust of police,” Pastor Johnson said of other complaints that were shelved along with hers.

For the residents whose complaint is pending, they just want a solution.

“You have to develop a process that works. I’m sure other people have complaints, they must have something that works,” the Hartford resident said.

The Center for Leadership and Justice and residents are expected to call for discipline against the officer by the end of the week in a news conference on Wednesday.

Pastor Johnson also stated that he believes the board's summer recess should be eliminated or modified, citing an increase in activity in the City of Hartford over the summer.

We have reached out to the Hartford Police Department for comment on the complaint but are awaiting their response.