WOODEN QUITS !

Numerous sources are confirming that Mayoral candidate Shawn Wooden has given up and is calling it quits in his run for Mayor. Wooden apparently began making calls earlier today to Hartford Democratic Town Committee members and spokespeople to advise them of his decision.

The decision apparently isn't sitting well with some Wooden supporters and donors to Wooden's campaign who thought he was a serious candidate. One donor stated to me that he would have never given a large donation to the Wooden campaign if he thought Wooden wasn't serious about going the distance.

Although it is not yet confirmed, one insider told me that a deal has apparently been cut for Wooden to now run for City Council on Segarra's slate and push for Wooden to become Council President if elected. If that were to happen, Wooden would be next in line for the Mayor's seat if Segarra were to leave for any reason.

It just makes me wonder how you suddenly throw your support behind someone you have been highly critical of for several months and then expect to be taken seriously. More Hartford Democratic politics at its best.

Both Cityline and Jeff Cohen have postings also, click on the links to the right to read their take. And Helen Ubinas had a good column today also, so show her some love and click her also

IS HARTFORD A CITY WITHOUT RESPECT ?

When you drive around the City, just looking at the condition of many of our neighborhoods, it seems as though we have a hard time respecting each other. To me, throwing trash down is a major sign of disrespect and you need to look no further than some of our main streets to see the abundance of litter.

Our parks have become illegal dumping grounds for not only trash but abandoned vehicles, car parts, boats and just about any other garbage you can think of.

But I'm just wondering if the tone is set and allowed by City Hall. Trash cans placed along the streets are usually overflowing with trash, city properties are poorly maintained, including school properties and parks. This past week I received a call from someone who had family members buried in the city owned Zion Hill Cemetery. They were complaining about the deplorable condition of the cemetery grounds.

I drove through the Zion Hill Cemetery Tuesday afternoon and the conditions were worse than I expected. If we can't even respect the dead, how can we respect ourselves as a City? There is no excuse for conditions like this and the people responsible should be held accountable or replaced by someone that can get the job done.

A CHALLENGE TO MY READERS

It seems that Chief Roberts didn't lose my number after all. He called yesterday and we had a long talk about various issues. It was a decent and respectful conversation. I know the sport of late has been pointing out problems at HPD and I know that much of that will eventually be documented as the independent report is completed and filed. As a sidenote, I hope the City of Hartford and Mayor Segarra really try to understand the meaning of transparency and don't play games with the release of the final report. Any attempt to avoid the release will only add to the mistrust of government and undermine the community's trust in HPD and its officers (not to mention potentially political suicide for anyone facing an election).

Ok, so here is the challenge: let me know what you think needs to be done to make HPD more effective. What programs can be changed to actually produce better results, what programs can be created or made more efficient?

Let's put the personalities aside and come up with some ideas to benefit Hartford and its neighborhoods. We all know many of the key players at HPD can, and probably will, change in the near future. The residents and business people who have made a committment to Hartford will not readily change. That is where we need to be thinking. Not about who's collecting the salaries at HPD, but who is trying to make change and do the right thing.

Most of you are well aware that the Chief, Mayor Segarra and most of City Hall and HPD read the blog. So if you have an idea or suggestion, I am asking you to post it here, but please make it a positive comment that can actually be used to better our City. Now that most of the mistakes have been pointed out, lets move forward and try to make something happen.

Let me know how creative we can be as a City. Thanks.

WHAT ARE OUR PRIORITIES?

Sometimes I just have to wonder what our priorities are as a community. I don't mean to minimize this incident because I value our trees and landscape as much as anyone else. The peeling of the bark from the cedar tree in Elizabeth Park was and is a senseless act of vandalism. The tree is not something that can be easily replaced, most likely it can't be replaced, and it has to raise the issue of what the people who did it really value or care about.

For several days now it has been in the media cycle, the names scratched in the tree are being publicized and broadcast in the hopes that the vandals will be identified. Thye television cameras and reporters have been all over this story.

Yet, Hartford is at 17 homicides for the year , we know those victims can never be replaced. There is no outcry except for maybe a couple ministers and the all too frequent vigils taking place on the street corners where they were murdered.

What does it say about our priorities when a 100 year old cedar tree receives more attention than a 74 year old innocent bystander shot in the chest and murdered on a Hartford street corner? How is it that all of a sudden numerous municipal and State resources can rally to save a tree, but it seems like no one is rallying to save Hartford's youth from the out of control gun violence.

Maybe I'm too cynical, but it just seems like our priorities are way out of whack.

ANYONE NOTICE THE NUMBERS?

"We the People" has passed the 325,000 mark on the hit counter, thanks for your support.

And thanks to a regular reader who prepared the new photo for the header, it looks great.

GOOD THINGS HAPPENING THAT WE DON'T ALWAYS HEAR ABOUT

The bad things that happen always make the rounds quickly, but the good things many times go unnoticed. Last night was one such event.

The Hartford Community Center hosted a neighborhood get-together last night at the Niles Street Coomunity Garden. The event was well attended by many members of the community and a few Council candidates also. The grills were going and everyone seemed to be enjoying the beautiful weather.

The highlught was the "ABC Drillteam". The team is apparently the creation of the Hartford Community Center and is a program that has, by the looks of it. quite a few of Hartford's young people involved. Their performance was impressive as the drillteam pulled off thier moves to the beats of several young men and the pounding rhythms of their marching band drums and cymbals.

THE ABC DRILLTEAM PICTURED ABOVE

It was good seeing both the youth involved and the adults coaching them taking pride in their performance. The crowd seemed pretty impressed with the performance also.

It just goes to show that there are some good programs guiding our youth and taking them in the right direction.

Congratulations to the Hartford Community Center for building neighborhood relationships and making a difference in the community, we need more of this.

DARYL...DO YOU STILL HAVE MY PHONE NUMBER?

If so Chief, it might be nice to call me before you start running around to community groups bad mouthing me.

I had thought you were more of a professional than that and if you would like a rematch, I'll be more than happy to put my facts and documents up against your denials any day, any time, in front of any group, just name the time and place. And if you honestly think that your problems coming to light now are only because you disciplined a Lieutenant for dancing on a table and for not promoting a Lieutenant "who looks like you", I think you are headed for a rude awakening.

And your comment to the Greater Hartford African American Alliance that the blog is all about my "ego", I will be the first to say that I am very proud of what this blog has become. The fact that it has also become a mechanism for exposing corruption, ineffeciency and wrongdoing and that many of your own people are willing to provide facts and documents I'm sure is a problem for you. And as far as ego's, I guess you would know what you are talking about.

The truth will eventually come out and the way it sounds with everything going on, it will come out sooner than later. Ask your previous boss Eddie Perez what the denials are worth when the truth actually comes out.

Chief, you and you alone were in a position to change all of the problems now coming to the surface if you had done what you needed to do. We talked over a year ago about the backstabbing by those you consider your confidants and you now are seeing the results of that. Remember when I told you to make sure you wore your vest so it might help when they stabbed you in the back?

If you think your only problems at HPD are a dancing Lieutenant and a Lieutenant that "looks like you", you have truly lost control of your department.

I anxiously await the Rudewicz report.

ANOTHER CORPORATION COUNSEL LOSS , SECORE WINS...AGAIN

The City of Hartford today notified attorneys for the Hartford Police Union and Hartford Police Officer Matthew Secore that are giving up and will finally abide by the rulings in favor of Secore.

Although the Connecticut Labor Board and the Connecticut Superior Court had ruled in Secore's favor, Assistant Corporation Nathalie Feola-Guerrieri instead chose to move forward in her efforts to keep Secore from returning to the ranks of HPD. That decision now promises to cost the City of hartford and its taxpayers several hundred thousand dollars in back pay for Secore and legal costs associated with Feola-Guerrieri's decisions.

Secore was originally terminated from HPD after he punched Ruben Perez, the nephew of former Mayor Eddie Perez, after Ruben Perez assaulted Secore's brother and caused severe injuries.

Secore appealed his termination and the Labor Board ruled that termination was too severe a punishment and reduced the punishment to a 90 day suspension. The Labor Board cited past practices of HPD in making their decision as well as Secore's honesty and truthfulness throughout the investigation.

Secore's back pay alone should total close to $200,000 not including interest and other benefits. Legal fees are most likely even more than that.

According to the City Attorney's, they are waiting to hear back from Chief McCoy as to whether there is space in the next Police Academy class to fit Secore in. In the meantime the meter is ticking on Secore's settlement.

Chief McKoy was unavailable for comment. At last report he was heading south on I-91 lights and sirens for a hair appointment.

Welcome back Officer Secore.

ROLDAN SHUT OUT BY HARTFORD DEMOCRATIC TOWN COMMITTEE, BUT DID IT EVEN MATTER ?

Hartford's 4th District State Representative Kelvin Roldan today ended his exploratory flip flop adventure and announced that he has finally decided what he wants to be when he grows up....Hartford's City Treasurer.

Apparently that decision, or the delay in arriving at it, didn't sit well with the Hartford Democratic Town Committee. Roldan made his announcement just hours before the HDTC was scheduled to interview the announced candidates for Treasurer and Mayor. Roldan did show up at Bulkeley High School loaded with his literature handouts ready to finally jump into the process, but he was not allowed to participate.

According to HDTC Chairperson Jean Holloway, their was a process and a schedule for submitting resumes and being invited for interviews. Roldan chose not to follow the process .

Roldan didn't miss much though since only a handfull of HDTC members even bothered to show up to hear the Treasurer or Mayoral candidates speak. Tonights interviews were even more poorly attended than the Council candidates interviews last night. Wednesday about 25 HDTC members were in and out throughout the night, tonight maybe about a doze n showed up.

It was far from any show of courtesy to the candidates that took the time to show up or even to members of the public that attended. It is a tribute to old-style Hartford politics where it is not about evaluating the candidates and making the best choice. If it was, all 64 HDTC members would have made it a point to be there and do what they were elected to do. Instead it showed that they have either made up their minds without evaluating the possibilities or, worse yet, they just don't care.

With a system as flawed as this one and so loaded with political patronage, it might just make sense to skip the endorsements and let everyone go to a primary and see who survives. It would be interesting to see all of the candidates have to work to gain their offices

ANOTHER CHANGE

I have decided to use a seperate website for my campaign. The site is still being built, but over the next few days it should be up and running for more information than just the home page that is there now.

Information on my ideas for the City, campaign issues, campaign events and how to make campaign donations will all be there soon.

Click on the logo to the right to go to the "Brookman for Council" website

THANK YOU, THANK YOU, THANK YOU, HARTFORD STEPS UP

Sometimes it may seem like Hartford has no heart, but I'm sure the people in tornado stricken Monson,Massachusetts have a different impression.

Unfortunately things like this don't make the "main stream" news cycles, I guess it doesn't rise to the level of sensationalism that a murder or shooting does.

Almost two weeks ago, Hartford Police Officer Mike Allen called me and asked for some help to get the word out that cardboard boxes were desperately needed for his neighbors in Monson Massachusetts whose homes had been destroyed or damaged by the tornadoes that swept through Massachusetts. I quickly agreed and then approached the next hurdle. Where could the boxes be collected?

I figured the State Armory or some place similar would work well as a drop off point. I contacted Governor Malloy's office and they also quickly went into action and in less than a half hour the State Office Building on Capitol Avenue was identified as a drop off point. Hartford DPW Director Kevin Burnham also offered a spot at the City Yard on Jennings Road as a drop off point.

Many people came forward to make it happen, state employees brought boxes to work, residents and business people dropped boxes off, my mother went around her neighborhood collecting boxes and law firms like Halloran and Halloran cleaned out their store rooms of folded file boxes. thank you to all of you

Although the "box drive" was only scheduled to go through last Friday, the boxes are still coming in. As of today, two 30 foot trailers have been filled with boxes and been delivered to Monson Massachusetts by Officer Allen. It is expected that there will be enough boxes to fill another 30 foot trailer full by the end of the week.

A few special thanks, first to Officer Allen for coming forward and being a good neighbor to his less fortunate neighbors in Monson, Mass. A very special thanks to Governor Malloy and his staff, including Shirley Surgeon, Chief of Staff Timothy Bannon, Commissioner of DPW Jonathan Holmes the building superintendents from the State office Building who facilitated the collection and the loading of the trailers and to all of their staff that helped and to Hartford DPW Director Kevin Burnham.

This is the common sense, no nonsense approach that can get things done and all of those that I mentioned above got this done in record time.

MY CAMPAIGN FOR HARTFORD CITY COUNCIL

I have been going back and forth on whether I should set up a separate website to post information regarding my campaign for Hartford City Council. The one thing I did decide though was that I was not going to make it part of the regular posting on the main page of the blog.

I think many of my readers are interested in the future of Hartford and the direction it is going, but I don't think everyone wants to read about me and why I'm running. If you are a regular reader you already know my position on a lot of things affecting Hartford.

I am going to try, at least to start, to just have a second page here on the blog than can be accessed by the tab in the upper right hand corner here on the blog.

Let me know what you think.

MORE POLITICAL THEATRICS AND SOME DIRTY TACTICS ALSO, THE RACE FOR MAYOR IS AS DIRTY AS USUAL

In true Hartford political style, the old "in the gutter" politics and showmanship are alive and well. If only as much thought and energy was put into making Hartford a truly better place.

I took some more pride in the power of bloggers to make change yesterday. If you recall, last week I had posted and asked the question when was the last time we saw any of our elected officials, the Police Chief or his Command staff or any of our various "Poverty Pimps" on a street corner in a problem area on a Friday or Saturday night.

Well, low and behold last night I was watching the 11:00PM new on Channel 30 when they had a story showing that Mayor Segarra and Chief Roberts and their entourage to create a true media spectacle, had descended on some of those very street corners I had asked about last week. I guess I need to commend them both for their true leadership and coming up with the idea to actually hit the streets to see what goes on.

I might suggest though, Gentlemen, that you are not dealing with stupid people. Even a young man out on a corner with a gun tucked in his pocket, probably doesn't see your visit as really one out of concern for them. The television cameras and the press release probably made it clear that you actions were more self serving for your own tarnished images and an attempt to save your own political lives, rather than the lives of the numerous homicide victims still to come this summer.

And if that isn't enough theatrics, in a city that hardly ever fills empty patrol cars or walk beats when they really should be filled, tonight to complete the Pedro and Daryl Dog and Pony show, HPD is bringing in at least 18 officers on overtime for tonight.

That's not a bad idea, the extra officers might make sense.It probably would have made more sense after homicide number 5 or 6 to start doing something rather than waiting for number 17 to be pronounced dead though.

But while the Mayor's side show was taking place out in the open and on the streets, another Mayoral campaign is forming its own strategies in the dirty political backrooms of Hartford. I can't say for certain 100% that it is the Wooden campaign because I'm sure they won't take credit for it, but last night I got a call from an "800" number, claiming to want me to be part of a political poll.

Now, usually legitimate polls sample between 500 or a 1,000 people through a random sampling of phone calls. The number of people that have called complaining about the poll would seem to indicate that it was more of a mass marketing phone banking scam rather than a legitimate poll.

It is what is called a "push poll" and is meant to instill either a negative image of one candidate while making his opponent look favorable by the way the questions are phrased and asked.

The reason I would think it is Wooden's campaign is because he was the one portrayed in the favorable light, while very negative questions were asked about Segarra, and Vargas and McCauley were quickly mentioned and passed over after the first few questions.

Did you know Shawn Wooden is going to improve education, focus on small business, make Hartford safer and and basically come in as Superman to rescue Hartford. Oh, and another good thing mentioned by the "pollster". he's not been a political insider like Segarra who has "been around too long to be effective" as one of the questions referred.

Did you also know that Segarra moved out of Hartford after not paying taxes, went bankrupt, was "financially reckless" while on the Council, left office as Corporation Counsel in "disgrace" after being forced out by Mayor Mike, he and his "husband" are currently being sued by a City employee, he kept Perez "cronies" in office, including Police Chief Daryl Roberts and finally he fails to take blame for his mistakes.

These are all things you can learn from a "pollster's" questions.

If this is what we have to choose from, the underdogs are looking better every day. The call came from 866-810-9248

ALYSSA PETERSON CALLS UPON CHIEF STATE'S ATTORNEY FOR ACTION

Southend activist and sometime political candidate Alyssa Peterson is calling on Chief States Attorney Kevin Kane to act on the Hector Robles delaying tactics after his recent arrest.

Robles still has not entered a plea in Court after his arrest on felony charges. According to Robles' attorney, that delay is apparently being caused by the City of Hartford's lack of transparency and stalling tactics in providing Robles with documents requested through an FOI request.

The lack of a plea does seem unusual to many observers.Some of the claims such as asking the Judge for a continuance until after an FOI hearing, even though his attorneys had actually asked for the FOI hearing to be delayed themselves are raising questions. Some are questioning if Robles wasn't a State Representative if he would be given the same "courtesies".

Peterson unsuccessfully tried to get the 6th District Democratic Town Committee to reconsider the nomination for Robles's seat when she raised the issue of his alleged criminal activity and the ongoing IAD investigation at the Hartford Police Department. Robles denied the accusations and was eventually arrested by the States Attorney's office, after his reelection to the Legislature

Peterson's request to Chief States Attorney Kevin Kane is posted below.
Alyssa Peterson Letter

GOING NOWHERE FAST

A Connecticut Transit bus was the latest victim of Hartford's streets today. The bus pictured above sunk into a sinkhole, or is it sank into a sinkhole. The sinkhole apparently opened up on Capitol Avenue near the intersection with Main Street.

Only one passenger was on the bus at the time and he apparently ran off once the driver told him the police had been called. No one was injured in the incident.

Tow trucks that were called to remove the bus originally backed off to regroup after concerns that their additional weight might cause the street to collapse more. Additional concerns were raised over an underground transformer under the bus that might have been on fire.

THE ACTUAL BUDGET NUMBERS

Last week I had posted that the Hartford City Budget had increased almost $150 million dollars since the day Eddie Perez took office in 2001. I also said the mill rate had almost doubled from the low 40's in 2001 to about 75 mills now.

Someone had posted that those numbers were false. Well, here are the actual numbers year by year.

Keep in mind that no Mayor can single handedly increase the budget or the mill rate without the express approval of the City Council. The Hartford City Council needs to share the blame for this just as much as the "strong" Mayor.

Here are the real numbers, is it any wonder why we can't attract new business or spur economic development with tax rates like this? Just to give you some perspective, the next highest mill rate in the State of Connecticut is New Haven at 45.86, much lower than Hartford's. Just for a sampling here are a few others; East Hartford-33.82, Meriden-29.53, Bridgeport-39.64, Waterbury-41.81, West Hartford-38.38, Windsor-28.38. And if you wonder why Stamford is able to attract new business over Hartford, the answer is simple one, Stamford's mill rate is 17.17.For all of the Connecticut municipalities mill rates, click here to go to Connecticut's Office of Policy and Management website

Hartford Budget and Mill Rate Since 2001

MORE TORNADO RELIEF: PARKVILLE STEPS UP

Parkville merchants and property owners seem to be very appreciative of their Hartford Police Community Service Officer, Mike Allen.

So appreciative, that when they heard their CSO, Mike Allen, lived in the area affected by last weeks tornadoes they began a fundraising effort to collect money to be used to purchase storm relief supplies.

According to Bill Howard of Parkville, as of today their efforts have already raised over $600.00.

Congratulations and keep up the good work

TORNADO RELIEF: BOX DRIVE IS ON

As I posted last week, Hartford Police Officer Mike Allen had called me regarding the urgent need for cardboard boxes in the area damaged by last week's tornadoes.

Governor Malloy and his office responded almost immediately when I called looking for a drop off point for people to drop off cardboard boxes. Shirley Surgeon of the Governor's staff coordinated the calls and within a short time the State Office Building at 166 Capitol Avenue was set up as the drop off point.

Anyone with extra cardboard boxes can drop them off through Friday at the loading dock on the east side of the building (directly across from the Bushnell Theater)from 7:30AM until 4:00PM.

The boxes are needed so that the people whose homes have been damaged can pack up their belongings and put them into storage.

I NEED TO VENT...NEXTEL/SPRINT IS A TERRIBLE COMPANY

For anyone who is a Nextel cell service subscriber, you probably already realize that.

Since Friday afternoon around 1:00PM there has been "some sort" of outage preventing most Nextel phones in the 860 area code from receiving incoming calls. Outgoing calls can still be made. I say "some sort" because Nextel/Sprint supposedly has been unable to identify, correct or even estimate when the problem will be fixed.

The major problem for me is that people trying to make incoming calls to Nextel cell phones don't even get any type of recording saying that they are experiencing a network problem or even directing the calls right to voice-mail.Instead all the caller hears is a rapid busy signal.

The frustrating part is the way Nextel is handling this. No text messages to their customers with updates as to what is going on, no e-mail alerts and nothing but a run around from their Customer Service people.

The final straw was just now when I called to get an update and the Customer "No-service" rep told me that it could be an AT&T problem because they provide the land line service to the cell tower and AT&T is closed until Monday. ARE YOU KIDDING ME? They were very accommodating though when they offered me a credit for 3 days. Then the operator I was speaking with told me I shouldn't feel too bad, that they have had an outage affecting portions of Michigan for three months now.

Oh, and now when I asked to speak to a supervisor, I have been on hold for over thirty minutes. Well the supervisor just got on the line, and lo and behold she wasn't even from the technical support department, she was a supervisor in the account cancellation department. They must be reading my mind.

I guess it is time to switch carriers after almost twenty years with Nextel. At the very least some sort of media notification should have been put out so that people might know what is going on.

WHAT IS BEING DONE TO COMBAT HARTFORD'S CRIME ?

If you read the comments here, and I know that many readers of the blog have an agenda one way or another, there doesn't seem to be a lot of change or increased attention to the fact that we have had 4 homicides in four days and we are rapidly approaching the total number of murders last year when we aren't even halfway through this year.

In case our Mayor and Police Chief don't realize it yet, we have a war going on in the streets of Hartford. A war that will most likely add more casualties this weekend at the rate we have been going.

It will be interesting to see who is out on Hartford's streets this weekend. Will any of the Assistant Chiefs be out at 2 or 3 in the morning to see what is actually going on and provide some leadership to the rank and file bailing water against the tide? If they can find time to start e-mail efforts with community groups to save their jobs, then I would hope they could find time to send a message to our street thugs that we are serious about fighting this trend of murders.

Does anyone on the corner of Albany and Vine even recognize Assistant Chief McKoy? When was the last time our Mayor or Councilpeople hit the streets to try to send a message to the young people of our City who are killing each other.

And where are our "Poverty Pimps"? Are they out working the street corners where these shootings are taking place? I know they make it a point to show up at the vigils and make their quick appearances while the TV cameras are rolling. They make even give a hug or two to victims families while they stand there crying. Then when the cameras disappear, so do they. What are they actually doing to quell the violence.

We pay good money to them and they should also be held accountable for the violence. Obviously what they are doing isn't working and it is time to try new ideas so that we as taxpayers start getting our moneys worth from those that have their hands out for the grant money.

And I am not a big believer in State Police coverage when the going gets tough, That money spent on Troopers coming in would me much better spent given to HPD for additional overtime for officers who already know Hartford's streets and its players. With that being said though, WE NEED HELP !!!!

I know for a fact that no request has been made to the State or the Governor's Office for assistance of any kind. Why not? When people are dying in Hartford's streets with 22 bullet holes in them from gunshots, it is clear that the situation is out of control.

How much overtime has been spent on the Intelligence Division at HPD to track these guns? How much has been spent on overtime for Vice and Narcotics to make a real dent in the drug trade that is fueling the violence. The answer is pretty much none, it is business as usual.

How many Community Service Officers and Conditions Teams are being given overtime to attack the hotspots in their areas. Pretty much none, more business as usual. The only overtime being spent is out of necessity for the Crime Scene Unit and Major Crimes detectives to come back after the murders take place because they have to investigate them.

Reacting to crime is not called leadership, planning ahead, identifying trends and working to prevent these crimes is a sign of leadership. Putting egos aside and asking for help when it is needed is also a sign of leadership. The people of Hartford deserve that, at the very least.

Which do you think affects Hartford's image more, people seeing the Capitol West building or reading daily about Hartford's crime. I would guess that the "4 homicides in 4 days" headlines harm Hartford a lot more than any blighted building ever could. Maybe we should take some of the money that is going to be spent on legal fees for that Capitol West mess and get some cops on the streets to hammer the hot spots and send a strong message or prevention.

In the meantime, the Governor's Office is listed in the phone book, call and ask for some help.

WILLIE EDWARDS LAWSUIT FILED AGAINST MAYOR SEGARRA..."ET AL"

The lawsuit has been filed against Mayor Pedro Segarra and his husband, Charlie Ortiz by Department of Public Works employee Willie Edwards.

The "intent to sue" and the details of the claim were posted here previously, to read that earlier posting, click here.

The summons for the lawsuit is posted below:

Hartford Willie Edwards Lawsuit

AN URGENT PLEA: I NEED YOUR HELP

And before you get started with the comments, no, not that kind of help.

In all seriousness, I received a call this afternoon from Hartford Police Officer Mike Allen. Officer Allen lives in one of the towns in Massachusetts heavily damaged by this weeks tornadoes. He asked if he could use the blog to get a message out and I readily agreed.

Officer Allen's home was not damaged by the tornado, but many of his neighbors homes were. Mike relayed to me that there is an urgent need for cardboard boxes for people to pack the contents of their damaged homes and move the items into storage.

In that spirit I am trying to help him organize a "box drive" for people to drop off cardboard boxes to get to the people that need them. The major issue is a drop off point for people to bring the boxes to somewhere in Hartford.

I have spoke with Shirley Surgeon, also a Hartford resident, who works in the Governor's Office. Shirley is attempting to come up with a drop off point somewhere in Hartford.In the meantime, I am reaching out to my readers to see if anyone has any ideas for a drop off point to get this started quickly.

Time is of the essence as we have some decent weather for the next few days so people can pack items without them being damaged any more. Please e-mail or call me with any ideas. Thanks

ALBANY AVENUE'S OWN CAPITOL WEST BUILDING

The Hartford Police Albany Avenue Substation, pictured above, is a prime example of the negative impact blighted properties have on Hartford's image

I still don't agree, and I probably never will agree, with the City's efforts to spend millions of dollars to take the Capitol West building by emminent domain. The argument that it will spur economic development carries no weight with me and I think it is less than genuine for politicians to use that as an argument for another photo op at campaign time.

Tonight I attended yet another vigil by the Reverend Henry Brown for what would normally be the City's latest homicide victim, Unfortunately now though that they are happening so often, Reverend Brown has a backlog on the vigils.

While I was standing there at the vigil, two things struck me. First off was the question, where were all the people that should be outraged? Outraged that an elderly 74 year old man was shot in the chest and murdered after he was innocently leaving a store after buying a Lipton Ice tea. Murdered by a couple of young thugs upset that they couldn't buy beer. There was maybe 20 or so people that joined Reverend Brown on the corner during his vigil.

Yet three nights before this homicide, on the opposite corner of Albany and Vine, over 200 people congregated after two people were shot in the ankles on Friday night.

I have been to enough of Rev. Brown's vigils to know that the low turnout is usually due to fear. The majority of the people that would attend from the neighborhood have to still live in the neighborhood so I understand their fear.

But as symbolic as our Mayor and other politicians claim that the Capitol West building is to blight and Hartford's image, I kept staring at the abandoned, boarded up Hartford Police substation. What message does that send?

What once was an image of Public Safety and a police presence in one of Hartford's most crime ridden neighborhoods, now seems like another abandoned property left behind similar to many others. Properties left behind by those that seem willing to write the area off. Even those that drive Albany Avenue regularly must question how the City could just walk away and let a symbol of Police presence just become another blighted property.

Another vacant lot would be better than what is there now. And as we all know, Hartford has a proud tradition of creating more vacant lots in the name of economic development.

Could we at least mow the grass? And I think former Councilman McGarry had an ordinance passed that the plywood used to board up an abandoned property should be painted to match the color of the building. That might make it less noticeable to the public that Hartford has abandoned its commitment to Public Safety and Community Policing on Albany Avenue

4TH HOMICIDE IN 4 DAYS, NUMBER 17 IS ON THE BOOKS

Hartford's 17th homicide victim for the year was just pronounced dead at Hartford Hospital. The victim was shot earlier in the evening in the Southend.

That now sets the pace for 4 homicides in four days and really draws into question what is being done to quell the violence. We aren't even into the heat of the summer and we are setting a record pace for homicides so far this year.

I really have to question the cut of $500,000 from the Police Departments overtime budget by the City Council.It seems like all resources should be brought to the table at this point to start controlling the crime "hot spots".

If the Council was really looking to cut expenses to reduce the mill rate the half a mill that they did, there is plenty of waste in other areas.

Eliminating the City's "Energy Czar", Capitol Projects Manager, Parks Operation Manager and an "undefined" position created in the Health Department for a Perez croney, would more than cover the cuts made to the HPD budget for overtime.

I'd much prefer knowing that Police Officers are being put on the streets to control violence rather than continuing to fund the Light Bulb inspector Energy Czar.Over half of the money cut from the HPD overtime budget could be recovered by the cost of salary and benefits and City car paid out for the Capitol Improvements Director, James Keaney.

I guess it is a matter of priorities.

MORE DETAILS ON "UP IN SMOKE"

Although it might be difficult to obtain documents from the City of Hartford, it is totally a different story with the State of Connecticut.

Within minutes of requesting documents from the State of Connecticut regarding the records "destroyed" recently by the Hartford Police Department, I received what I requested via e-mail. The City has not provided any documents regarding the incinerated documents or any details as to specifically what was destroyed.

HPD sources are telling me that payroll records through 2008 were incinerated along with numerous other documents. In the attached request for permission to destroy the documents, the State of Connecticut specifically denied HPD permission to do that. HPD spokesperson Nancy Mulroy could not confirm what documents were destroyed.

In addition, in the request to destroy the records, both Hartford Police Chief Daryl K. Roberts and Mayor Pedro Segarra both signed the state's forms certifying that "No records listed, in our opinion, pertain to any pending case, claim or action".

It might be possible that Mayor Segarra had no knowledge of the "impending storm" when he signed off on May 2, 2011, but I'm not sure that the Chief and his staff can say the same.

Considering that one officer is already under arrest for payroll fraud, others might be implicated, an investigation is about to commence tomorrow and who knows where that will lead, it seems somewhat less than truthful that they could certify that "No records listed, in our opinion, pertain to any pending case, claim or action".

And still, the question needs to be asked, why the rush to burn documents that might prove helpful in the outcome of an investigation that is purported to be trying to get to the truth and maintain the "integrity" of HPD. Unless maybe we can't handle the "truth".

And again, the offer still stands that if Chief Roberts or HPD would like to provide the inventory of actual documents destroyed, I will gladly post them here.

Hartford Disposals From 2001