Search This Blog

Wednesday, July 2, 2014

I BET NO ONE SAW THIS COMING

According to sources within the Hartford Fire Department, Firefighter Douglas Caldwell is no longer an employee of the HFD.

According to the sources and media accounts, Caldwell was given a final chance at success as a firefighter after several alcohol related incidents while acting as a firefighter. After a recent stint in rehab, Caldwell apparently agreed to sign a letter of resignation that could be used anytime over the next two years if any more incidents occurred. That letter was apparently used today.

No official comment or details are available from HFD at this time.

This comes on the heels of the latest firefighter who was deemed unfit for duty  at Engine 9 on New Britian Avenue after he apparently showed up late for work yesterday, drunk.

This is hopefully not a trend at HFD  and it is something the Administration needs to get under control and address quickly. This is something the taxpayers of Hartford can not afford, the training costs and maintaining a firefighter are by no means inexpensive , not to mention what are the root causes  of the drinking problems.

Tuesday, July 1, 2014

UPDATES ON UPCOMING POSTS

Is it something in a name? Toronto's Mayor isn't the only one. I am still gathering the documents on the claims of racism by a Hartford Deputy  Police Chief , but apparently the plot is thickening and is widening outside of HPD. Stay tuned for this one.

And what Hartford Labor Unions are under scrutiny for questionable use of funds and missing money. The answer might surprise you. The documents will be forthcoming on that soon also

Keep reading "We The People Hartford" for the interesting answers

SOMETHINJG STINKS IN MAYOR SEGARRA'S OFFICE...AND IT IS NOT BAD CAVIAR

 
McEnroe:  "WOODEN... is now moving backward like a crawfish on crack"
 
Anyone that has been paying attention knows the Rock Cats deal stinks, but as we continue to peel back more layer's of the onion, it is becoming much clearer how bad the deal is and more questions are being raised.

Last week I posted about the "unspecified"  account that a City Hall source found in Munis. Munis is the City of Hartford's proprietary accounting and software system.

The source stated that the account appeared to have about $450,000 in it and showed expenses paid out of the account to Updike Kelly, a law firm and other consultants working on the Rock Cats deal.

Today WNPR's Jeff Cohen reported on the specifics of  those payments.

But how that account was funded and how the payments were approved is now raising more questions. You can read Cohen's story here

Although Segarra or his mouthpiece claim they have the authority to reallocate CIP (Capital Improvement Project) funds, a source in the Hartford Treasurers Office told me tonight he does not. That duty is reserved for the Council. No revised Bond Resolutions have been before the Council to re-allocate the funds Segarra is spending.

Colin McEnroe is right on this one. Council President Shawn Wooden who had no problem standing behind Segarra and the Solomon's (the Rock Cats  owners)I now busy back pedaling, according to McEnroe "like a crawfish on crack"

Maybe it is time for Wooden and the Council's OMB Committee to start bringing some truth and common sense to this deal. Where did the money come from? How was it approved? And most importantly, is it even legal the way it was done.

It might possibly be legal if the money was actually voted on by the Council when they approved this years budget, but we know that didn't happen under the veil of secrecy that shrouded this deal. I think we would have noticed a budget item labeled "Rock Cats".

For Segarra who is always saying he is about "the process" this process needs to be thoroughly investigated. Council President Wooden has every authority to start the ball rolling. Who approved the expenditures for these payments and transfers, was it the Finance Director, the Comptroller, the Mayor's Office, the Budget Director?

To read Colin McEnroe's full article, click here


Thursday, June 26, 2014

LESSON NUMBER 12 FOR HARTFORD CRIMINALS...NEVER LEAVE YOUR CAR AT A GUNFIGHT

I guess lesson number 13 for Hartford criminals might be don't fire on three guys that all are carrying guns of their own, legally with permits.
FROM HPD:
On the listed date and time Patrol Units were dispatched to 215 Branford Street for multiple shots fired
being reported. STF Units were in the area and responded with the Patrol Units. On arrival officers were
flagged down by three parties who identified themselves as pistol permit holders who had just fired their
firearms at a suspect who had attempted to shoot at them. Witnesses stated a black male arrived in the area
of 215 Branford Street in a gray Infiniti. The operator parked, exited the vehicle, and stood in the street
yelling out someone's name. The operator then produced a firearm and pointed it at a resident who was
standing on the sidewalk in front of his home. The resident stated the suspect fired shots at which point all three permit holders returned fire at the suspect .

The suspect fled west on foot out of sight, leaving his vehicle behind. 
Due to no HPD K9 working, a StatePolice K9 responded. A track from the suspect vehicle tracked to the suspect hiding in the rear of 145 PalmStreet along the side of a porch. The suspect was taken into custody after a brief struggle by Detective Rodney and Trooper Charette. The suspect was still in possession of a .380 caliber firearm. 

The suspect,identified as Russell Payne, was not struck by gunfire. The suspects vehicle and a citizen vehicle was struckby gunfire. Witnesses positively identified Payne as the shooter. The suspect was in possession of keys that fit the Infiniti. An extensive neighborhood canvass was conducted in the direction the shots were fired to  ensure no random victims were struck by stray projectiles.

Accused Payne was irrational and violent throughout the incident. Payne spit at officers, refused to submit to
the booking process and flooded two cells.

Accused: Russell Payne, M/B/24 (12/20/1989), of 73 Lenox Street, Hartford, CT.
Charges: Carrying a Pistol w/o a Permit, Possession of Pistol w/ Obliterated S/N, Crim. Attempt Assault 1st
Degree, Assault on Police, Reckless Endangerment 2nd Degree, Threatening 2nd Degree, Interfering w/
Police, Refusal to Submit to Fingerprinting and Criminal Mischief 2nd Degree.

Firearm Seized: Bersa .380 Caliber Firearm w/ Obliterated S/N, with one chambered round and empty magazine.

MORE FROM HPD

 
On August 14, 2013 at 9:57pm Hartford Police Department patrol units responded to 48 Evergreen Ave. on the report of shots fired. On arrival two victims were located in front suffering from numerous gunshot wounds. They were identified as Jerome Copeland 1/18/91 and Rasheed Sterling 3/20/91.  

Both were transported to Saint Francis where Copeland was pronounced deceased at 2223 hours. Sterling survived his injuries. The HPD Major Crimes Division Homicide Detectives responded and began an investigation. Several witnesses were identified and interviewed. Detectives located key physical evidence at the scene that assisted in the investigation.  

A suspect was developed and on 6/26/14 an arrest warrant was secured charging the suspect Demetry Mclean DOB 5/28/1992 with  Murder, Criminal Attempt Murder, Assault First Degree and Carrying a pistol without a Permit. Mclean has a judge set bond of 3 million dollars cash or surety. 

Mclean also has 3 additional warrants for Failure to Appear in court on separate cases. It is believed that Mclean is a flight risk and has possibly already left the state and/or country. HPD is looking for information on his whereabouts. 
 

 

HARTFORD CITY COUNCIL...WAKE UP AND SMELL THE ROSES

All of the attention to the Rock Cats deal is drawing attention to the real problems at City Hall. Apparently the media hasn't figured out that Mayor Segarra placed $450.000 into a special "non-specific" account in MUNIS. MUNIS is the City's accounting and operations software program. . The money is  in the "secret " account that has been used to pay a couple hundred thousand dollars so far for consultants , lawyers and  other "incidentals" related to the Rock Cats deal.

Although Segarra had to sell off City assets to balance his budget, he was able to find almost half a million in Capital Improvement Project (CIP) money to stash away to work to start the crazy deal. This probably isn't even legal since reallocation of CIP money typically would require a City Council resolution to re-allocate the Bond funds.

Where is our City Council  as far as addressing this violation? They are too busy holding press conferences and back pedaling now to worry about playing by the rules.

But my reason for this posting is a rather scary document I received that should have the Council scrambling to find every penny they can to avoid a huge disaster on the horizon.

The Council Has repeatedly cut money from the Hartford Police Department budget, especially for Police hiring. This year Governor Malloy and the legislature found and gave a couple million dollars to give to Segarra to once again bail him out. I am not sure they will fall for that again after $60 million was just handed to a group of real estate billionaires from a City that claims to be broke.

The money from the State that allowed the Council to re institute a Police Academy class of 20 or 30 officers is definitely a good start.  Thank you Governor Malloy, shame on you Hartford City Council.

It is a good start.Unfortunately police hiring is not just a matter of placing an ad in the paper. It is almost a two year process from testing to backgrounds to hiring to academy training to FTO (street) training and evaluation. And even after that, most officers will admit that they really weren't comfortable on their own until maybe four or five years into their careers. And the statistics support that. The learning curve for problems in those first years is high. For everything from cruiser accidents, bad shootings  bad arrests they are all high in the first few years and then drastically  begin to dip around year seven.

The chart below, which I am sure is available to any Council person if they cared, shows that disaster on the horizon I mentioned earlier.  Even though the Council will be replacing up to thirty officers, those numbers somehow seem to get cut when we really get around to it , and then typically 5 to 10 usually don't make the cut in the end. We may actually get 20 new officers if they fully fund the class.

 The chart shows the 94 officers that can retire before that next class would be ready for use on the streets. Now when a Council addresses budget issues for a City that is broke and talks layoffs and tax increases  and then within weeks are ready to give away $60 million they don't have, I am comfortable in saying they either can't add 2 plus 2 to get to 4 or they don't understand economics.

Here is a quick tutorial for Council President Wooden. if you have 94 Police officers that can retire and you have 20 Police Officers that complete the Police Academy how many Police Officers does that leave you?  Don't bother taking off your shoes to use your toes to count,.It is a net loss potentially of 74 Officers. A "net Loss" is not a good thing Councilman. Kind of like when you are broke and selling the parking garages on the monopoly board  and have no cash to pay the $200.00 to pass go.

I only posted those potential retirees that could retire over the next 2 years before a new Academy class would graduate. There are a total of 94 Officers. The first column are the officers, second column is their rank, third is their date of hire and the fourth is the year they could retire.

As with the baseball Stadium, the numbers just don't add up