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Tuesday, July 8, 2008

WE THE PEOPLE PROGRAM, JULY 7, 2007

CLICK HERE TO VIEW THE JULY 7, 2007 PROGRAM, AS WE RIDE ALONG WITH THE HARTFORD POLICE NARCOTICS DIVISION http://video.google.com/videoplay?docid=-6722740031961452746&hl=en

Wednesday, July 2, 2008

HARTFORD'S TWO TAX COLLECTORS


On Monday June 26, 2006, Hartford's Tax Collector Donald LeFevere made a decision that would forever affect his career and his future with the City of Hartford. LeFevere, in an e-mail, accused Hartford Mayor Eddie Perez of illegal activity. The incident involved Perez picking up a check for $54,000 from a property owner, Carlos Alvarez, for delinquent taxes on a property at 747 Maple Avenue. In doing so, Perez allegedly told Alvarez that his taxes were paid in full, and apparently "forgave" almost $10,000 in late fees, interest and collection fees. Tax Collector LeFevere felt that Perez's activity was illegal, and took the bold step of putting this in writing in an e-mail he sent to Finance Director Thomas Morrison, copied to Eddie Perez, Tax Assessor Lawrence LaBarbera and Economic Development employee Jose Rodriguez. http://www.scribd.com/doc/3811667/lefevere-illegal-email



Subsequent to LeFevere's accusations of Perez's illegal activity, through documents received through an FOI request, it appears that meetings were held to remove LeFevere and inquiries were made as to if LeFevere's state certification as a Tax Collector could be revoked. Ultimately, in a letter dated October 19, 2006, Hartford's Chief Operating Officer Lee Erdmann notified Donald LeFevere the "City of Hartford has recently received a number of allegations concerning the management and operations of the Tax Collection Unit of the Finance Department" and that "you (LeFevere) are being placed on paid administrative leave until further notice, pending the investigation of these allegations". We have requested documentation of the complaints or allegations against LeFevere referenced in Erdmann's suspension letter through an FOI Act request. As of this date the City has not complied with the request.




In minutes obtained of a January 24, 2007 grievance hearing, through LeFevere's union attorney, he was told that the City's belief "is that he is being paid, think of it as a vaca.. don't sweat it". Apparently, LeFevere didn't agree with that conclusion and pushed forward with his complaint. On August 6, 2007, LeFevere, his union, and the City of Hartford reached a settlement agreement which potentially will cost the taxpayers of Hartford in excess of a quarter million dollars in wages and an unknown amount in health insurance benefits as the City has agreed to pay LeFevere's and his spouses full health insurance benefits until age 65, as well as any supplemental insurance for costs not covered by medicare after age 65. Lefevere was paid almost a years wages from the time of his "paid" suspension until the signing of the settlement agreement, approximately $79,000, a lump sum of almost $35,000 after signing the agreement, another lump sum within 10 days of January 10, 2008 of almost $80,000, and another lump sum payment due after January 1, 2009. (Link to settlement agreement )http://www.scribd.com/doc/3811813/LeFevere-settlement


When LeFevere was placed on suspension, Lydia Rosario was appointed "acting" Tax Collector. Rosario, a close ally of Mayor Perez, was not a certified tax collector (CCMC, Connecticut certified municipal collector) at the time of her appointment. The CCMC certification process is administered through the State of Connecticut, Office of Policy and Management (OPM). As of this writing, the OPM has confirmed that Rosario is not now, nor has she ever been, a certified Tax Collector in the State of Connecticut. It is important to note that , according to sources, Rosario has been a focus of the Grand Jury investigating alleged corruption in the Perez Administration. Rosario was apparently the author of an internal memorandum that essentially doubled the fees paid by the City to political operative Abe Giles for moving fees for evictions across the City. Although the City has remained elusive as to fees paid to Giles or any contracts or changes outlining such fees, the memo apparently written by Rosario has surfaced during the Grand Jury investigation.




Through our FOI request, the city provided over 1000 pages of requested e-mails detailing the activities in the Tax Collectors Office, actions by the Mayor and his staff, Human Resources Director Santiago Malave, Finance Director Thomas Morrison and others. In an apparent violation of Connecticut FOI Statutes, much of the information was redacted or "blacked out" to avoid identifying persons , addresses, and other detailed information. FOI laws allow for redaction's in very limited instances, such as personal or banking information, social security numbers or information that would compromise ones personal safety.




Through our FOI request, other information was found that details a pattern of potential fraud and wrongdoing on the part of city employees in the Tax Collector's Office and the Finance Department. The City has not provided information as to the outcome of these investigations, and a request to the Hartford Police Department has not been able to provide any verification as to whether any police investigations or arrest were made. The reports do not detail any actions taken against the accused employees or whether they individuals were terminated or still employed by the City. LINK TO AUDIT REPORT http://www.scribd.com/doc/3811882/audit-review-cash


More on this to come as we proceed.



HARTFORD'S DOUBLE STANDARD



Deputy Chief Dan Nolan, seated, center


"More than two months after Hartford Deputy Fire Chief Daniel Nolan was placed on paid administrative leave amid accusations that he offered leniency to Hartford Fire Department recruits in exchange for charitable contributions, his status remains in limbo." Hartford Courant Article, 7/2/08 http://www.courant.com/community/news/hfd/hc-hfdfire0702.artjul02,0,4971831.story


This is the height of hypocrisy, the City suspends an employee for trying to teach future city employees a sense of community by getting them involved in charitable events and public service. No accusations of Nolan benefiting from the actions, no accusations of pay-offs, just maybe using a tactic that others didn't approve of.
Yet we have a Mayor under Grand Jury investigation, accusations of dirty deals to line the Mayor's, certain Council Members and other city Hall employees pockets, dirty deals for crooked politicians and payoffs for parking lots, dumpster deals and alleged contract steering on school building projects.

Where is the same standard being applied? Shouldn't we also be calling for Perez to be placed on suspension until his investigation is conducted.If the facts are truly as they are laid out here, Dan Nolan should be commended for his actions. In a society where it is all about "me first" Nolan's actions should be encouraged to teach young persons what leadership is about and a sense of community pride.
It will be very interesting when the real cause for this action eventually comes out. Most likely someone politically connected whose toes Nolan stepped on.

Friday, June 20, 2008

IS THE COURANT PROMOTING RACISM?


This afternoon, our beloved Mayor conducted a "press conference" accusing the Courant of promoting hate speech by allowing readers to post on courant.com. Like most of us who slow to look at accidents on the highway, I couldn't avoid the chance to view this trainwreck first hand. I wasn't supposed to know about the event, as Sarah Barr has still refused to add me to media notifications. Fortunately, over the years I have built relationships with other media people who are more than willing to forward me the notifications.

Anyway, let me get back to my point. What I saw at the "rally" was something I totally did not expect. I saw a man who was able to see the best in people at a time of crisis, a man that exhibited true leadership at a time that it is sorely needed, a man that refused to use a terrible string of events for his own personal gain, a man that spoke from the heart and not a prepared script. Before anyone thinks that I have lost my mind, no that man was not Eddie Perez. As I was videoing the event for my program, I looked behind me and saw a man standing down the street by himself under the shade of a tree. The man was Angel Arce, who's father was struck and left for dead in the street almost 2 weeks earlier. I approached Angel, who I have known and respected for several years, and asked how his dad was doing. In an emotional voice he said both he and his family were overwhelmed by the outpouring of support, and the comments being made by Perez were way off base. Angel stated that they have been inundated by cards and showings of support from across the country wishing his father well. Black, white, hispanic, every ethnicity you could think of, nothing racist about it at all. And when you would expect him to agree with Perez and be bitter after all that his family has been put through, a promising ray of leadership shines through. Angel stated that he's not about embarrassing people, or name-calling, but rather this is a time for the city and its people to come together. Instead of blaming the Courant, blame the individuals who ran his Dad down. Angel said that rather than grandstanding, people should be working to identify the persons who have shown the worst of what Hartford can be if we don't unite and move our city forward. I'm not sure that I could show the same forgiveness and civility that Angel showed if that was a family member of mine lying in a bed paralyzed. In a time when everyone wants to focus on what is wrong with Hartford, Angel Arce, without saying a word, shows what is great about Hartford.


Angel, our thoughts and prayers are with you and your family. Keep being an inspiration to me and others.

And to answer the question, is the Courant promting racism?
my vote is no, they are promoting free speech. No one is forcing any of us to log on, and it seems as though there are more pressing issues for us to focus on.

Wednesday, June 18, 2008

HONESTY, INTEGRITY, AND THEN THERE IS EDDIE



If anyone advising our beloved Mayor, King Eddie the 1st, were employed in the private sector as public relations consultants, they would surely be looking for employment elsewhere.


It seems that despite their valiant efforts, the Mayor's spin team can not deflect negative attention away from the obvious incompetence of our city's "leaders". The most recent attempt occurred after several high profile black-eyes the city received in the national media. Once again City Hall was forced to react , because of their failure to act in the first place. The vicious attack on Nick Carbone and the hit and run of Angel Arce-Torres forced many in the city to express their outrage, yet crime against people across the city is nothing new. Ironically, it took City Hall almost a week to acknowledge the hit and run attack on Arce-Torres, and only after national media outlets were knocking on the door for info.The Mayor's response was not to accept or admit any responsibility for the behavior of our city, but instead to accuse the Courant and bloggers at courant .com of racism. King Eddie the 1st went even further and DEMANDED an apology from the Courant for their actions.


Maybe it is time that we as residents of the City of Hartford start demanding apologies from our beloved Mayor for his actions that embarrass and divide us as a City. Let's start with an apology for his actions that have resulted in a grand jury investigation.Let's DEMAND an apology for his "mistakes" that resulted in a search warrant being issued for his home and the resulting investigation by the Office of the Chief State's Attorney. Let's DEMAND an apology for the use of almost $100,000 for private lawyers to represent city staffers before the Grand Jury. The question arises why would they need lawyers to represent them at the city's expense, unless they are concerned about potential criminal charges themselves. In which case, I would think they should be on their own. I'm not aware of any city official being required to commit criminal acts as part of their official job performance. Let's DEMAND an apology for his misuse of funds and the lack of integrity he showed when he used city funds for his own political and personal gain and published the "Hartford Educator" and was eventually fined by the Elections Enforcement Commission. Let's DEMAND an apology for the way he has treated our Governor and soured the relationship between the people of Hartford and the Capitol. The same Governor who always comes through when we need her and help from the state level, most recently through the deployment of state troopers to our city. A deployment that was made necessary because our beloved Mayor continues to keep his head buried in the sand and deny crime problems exist in Hartford. Let's DEMAND an apology for the almost $4 million spent when King Eddie THE 1st decided to forge ahead with his inappropriate plan to build a school at the corner of Farmington and Broad Street. Spending money for site work, steel for the building and other expenses, despite warnings from the State that a school was not an allowed use for that piece of land. Let's DEMAND an apology from the Mayor for providing dumpsters and parking lot privileges to political ally Abe Giles, all at the taxpayers expense for his own political gain. Let's DEMAND an apology from the Mayor for his treatment of the Waterford Group and the Wohlman brothers, developers who were willing to invest in Hartford when others wouldn't. They built the Marriott, renovated the Hilton invested in Hartford, only to be sued by the Mayor to force a union down their (and their employees ) throats. Unions that even the employees didn't want, unions that should be fighting their own legal battles and not at the City's expense.

I could continue to list the missteps and embarrassment's created by the Mayor and his staff, but anyone familiar with Hartford knows that Perez will be the first to accept credit, but accepting any blame or uttering the words "I'm sorry" are not possible. The time for an apology is long overdue, unfortunately for Hartford as a city, the handwriting on the wall suggests it may come before a jury of his peers

Friday, June 13, 2008

SOCIAL SERVICE AGENCIES OR POVERTY PIMPS?




A few years ago when I reached my boiling point with crime in Hartford, I put together a roundtable discussion on Hartford Public Access Television. Helen Ubinas from the Courant, local activists Andrea Comer and Carl Hardrick and a student from the Hartford School System were part of the panel. Former Police Chief Patrick Harnett had agreed to be on the panel and at the last minute he backed out. According to HPD insiders, Harnett was going to teach me a lesson by not appearing because I had made his life a "living hell" since the day he arrived in Hartford. I wonder who taught who, he bailed on the city after less than two years. Although with the price of gas, his weekend commutes out of the city back to his house in New York would be more costly to the city these days.

Well, let me get back on point. During that panel discussion, Helen Ubinas used a term I had never heard before, "poverty pimps". She explained that many of the so called "leaders" were making a very good living off the problems facing the city. Much money is dumped into the problems facing Hartford, with very little oversight or tracking of results. No one seems to really expect results, but by funding the "poverty pimps" City Hall can at least say they are doing something. The other point was that many people in Hartford are making a very good living off poverty, so there is not a real reason to correct any problems other than making superficial progress so it looks good. It's called job security.

Tonight I watched Channel 3 news and they had a report on Cornell Lewis and his group the "Men of Color Initiative". I was surprised also to hear Mayor Perez mention him at Wednesday's dog and pony show on the steps pf City Hall. Is this the same Cornell Lewis that moved out of Hartford when the going got tough. Or did he move out of Hartford with the salary he was making after the Mayor and the city dumped a couple hundred thousand dollars in his lap for funding his social programs, and to make sure he remained faithful to the Perez regime. For those of you who don't recall or didn't see the event, Lewis was the one standing behind the mayor in the dark shades waving a Perez campaign sign at Rawson School when Perez announced his re-election campaign last summer. I would doubt that anyone ever asked for an accounting or even a report on the accomplishments of Lewis's group. I know some of the funds were spent on yellow windbreakers, but I'm not sure who accounts for the other couple hundred thousand. I doubt it is the Mayor's Office , they have a hard enough time just controlling the costs for Hartford Public High construction.

That's just one example. Let's look at the Keney Park stables. Even though our King, EDDIE THE FIRST, promised throughout the campaign last fall to re-establish the Mounted Police Unit, the week after the election he gave away the rights to stables to the Ebony Horsewomen. The stables were leased to the group, or actually given, free of charge, with the only requirement that they provide insurance on the building. This group was also funded by the City to provide a horse riding program to benefit Hartford's Youth. Recently, Chief Roberts realized the need for use of the stables and was caught in a quandary since Perez had given away the farm. He requested a list of youth served by the program and an example of their results so he could lobby for them and work out some arrangement. No list was available, no list has been made available since and not even a list of program results has been provided. Although it seems that it is very profitable renting out the stalls to private individuals for boarding of their horses, apparently at the city's expense.

And let's not forget our Council President Torres. From what I am being told, activities that he has allegedly been involved with through the Puerto Rican Forum and funded through the City, are believed to be part of the inquiries being conducted by the Grand Jury looking into King Eddie the First and at least 3 City Council members as well as other targets throughout City government. Torres, as a council member apparently voted on financial proposals to benefit himself and others at the Forum or connected with the Forum, and funded by the City. Clearly a conflict of interest obvious to most prudent people.

And so as not to leave the Southend out, when are we going to take HART off life support and pull the plug connected to the City Hall respirator. HART which at one point was a vibrant community organization under Jim Bouchet, has become almost as irrelevant as the Republican Party in Hartford. Their annual bus tour of blighted properties and their annual Congress are pretty much their major claims to fame, and at last check the budget was close to 1 million a year.

The other major issue I have with Hartford's "Poverty Pimps" are how few of them actually reside in Hartford. The city of Hartford should be more than just a paycheck during the day to many of these people. It amazes me that many executive directors of Hartford's non-profits funded through the city, don't even reside in Hartford. Whether it's homeless shelters, the local public access station, consultants for the NRZ's or any other program, do we really need to be guided who flee the city at night. Wouldn't people who work in the communities and reside in the neighborhoods they serve have a much better understanding of the needs facing those neighborhoods. I know this wouldn't work for the Chairman of the Board of Education, since as King Eddie told us, so it must be true, he was the only one qualified to lead the Board. But in the case of our poverty pimps, I'm sure there are many Hartford residents who would be more than qualified to work to improve our city, at the same time re-investing their $65,000 plus salaries into our local economy through home ownership and living and working in Hartford. I don't think that people from Glastonbury or Portland or Enfield or Farmington need to tell us how to fix Hartford. I keep saying that we don't need to keep hiring consultants to tell us how to fix the city, just ask almost any of our city residents and they will gladly offer solutions as well as volunteer to work to fix the problems.
Lets start looking at programs that are making a difference in the City without any government funding. A couple that immediately come to mind are the Greater Hartford African American Alliance, a group that has committed members that meet every Saturday morning and address many issues including Public Safety, Education, Minority employment on government funded projects and numerous other issues with very positive results across the city and at the Capitol, all without a penny from the City. Also, the NRZ program which is top heavy in its funding , has many neighborhood groups that are doing great jobs in their respective neighborhoods without any money from Hartford 2000 (the NRZ parent organization). The one that I attend regularly is the Maple Avenue NRZ. I can assure you that nothing happens in their area without the NRZ taking a stand on it and seeing results from their actions.

It is called leadership, something Hartford is sorely lacking.