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Friday, July 7, 2017

THE JIMMY NGO SHOOTING, SOMETHING DOESN'T MAKE SENSE

I am not always correct, and I can admit when I am wrong, but my gut is telling me something stinks here.

Usually when  I post a blog story I get plenty of calls about the subject of the posting. Many of the calls are usually from people familiar with the topic. Some pro, some con, but usually plenty of different opinions.

Jimmy Ngo was an exception to that. Now I have never met Jimmy, but plenty of people who know him have called me though. 100% of the people who called said they never knew or heard of him being involved with drugs. They all painted a picture of a hard working conscientious firefighter, committed to his career. I was told he always had a smile on his face and was professional and polite.

Most of his colleagues were surprised when the word of his shooting on Thursday April 20th began spreading throughout the Hartford Fire Department. People were totally amazed when the details of the arrest of Jesus Perez, the alleged shooter, began emerging this week. Perez's defense seems to be a picture he painted of a drug deal gone bad.

Those details are spelled out in the arrest warrant affidavit that led to Perez's arrest on attempted murder, assault, robbery and firearms  charges this week.

It gets somewhat5 confusing when Detective Meier uses the first six pages of the affidavit to attempt to establish the background and the motive for the shooting. That theory sounds more like the opening of a John Grisham novel. Even though there are numerous references to the drug deal gone bad, there appears to be no attempt to verify the "third party" drug dealers identity, just that he was present. There is also no mention of the type of drugs, the alleged quantity or even if the location Perez claims the drugs were obtained was even a known drug location.

I know, I know, the "narcotics" and the "unknown third party " all disappeared after the shooting according  to the eventually arrested shooter Jesus Perez. But that  seems odd to me that several pages were allotted to Perez's theory of the crime, but nothing to attempt to verify that theory. and if you read the affidavit, Perez seems to have a credibility problem. Why would someone who claims he just witnessed a possible shooting not even call the Police, even  anonymously if needed.

The part that confuses me though is that eventually revealed in paragraph 16. Detective Meier seems to make an abrupt U-turn and lays out a totally different version of the shooting, which seems to be a more factual version than the Grisham novel laid out previously. Jimmy Ngo identified Jesus Perez as the shooter . Ngo seems to make the claim it was because he told Perez he was cutting off the money train he had been providing to him.

Paragraph 16 also once again mentions the elusive "drug deal gone bad". Detective Meier states that the illicit drug deal was "several months" in the planning, yet the timeline doesn't add up. Roughly less than 2 months had gone by since the time Perez claims they began planning the drug deal in early February and the shooting on April 20th. Hardly the several months detailed in the warrant.

And the warrant affidavit is specific about the video obtained from surrounding businesses detailing the times of vehicle movement on the property, yet there is no mention of the vehicle containing the  "unidentified third party". Could that be because there was no third party and the tale weaved by Jesus Perez was an attempt to just cover the shooting of Jimmy Ngo?

The charges in the arrest warrant would seem to confirm Jimmy Ngo's version, resulting in the arrest of Jesus Perez.

I would also question the legitimacy of Ngo's statements and how they would hold up in court considering Ngo had been shot in the head and was most likely under some serious medication at the time. And I would also wonder how someone could waive their Miranda rights under such conditions.

Sources familiar with the incident have told me that Ngo emphatically denies making any statements  about his involvement in at drug deal, as claimed by the alleged shooter Jesus Perez. CSP claims there are audio and video recordings of NGO's statements, as well as written statements. It will be interesting to hear those recordings and see if Ngo appears lucid or disoriented in them.

 Any one who watches any television knows that you should "lawyer up"  under such circumstances, yet Jesus Perez laid out the details of the alleged "drug deal gone bad" in his first telephone conversation with the State Police detectives as detailed in paragraph 10. Perez spilled his guts to CSP Detective McGlynn less than 14 hours after the shooting, in a phone call none the less.

I know that the facts might look bad for Jimmy Ngo right now, but hopefully the people who called me in support of Jimmy will be proven correct as the facts unwind. There will be a quite a few disappointed people who had high hopes for a young Hartford Firefighter if it doesn't.

You can read the arrest warrant affidavit here

Wednesday, July 5, 2017

ARREST MADE IN SHOOTING OF HARTFORD FIREFIGHTER-THE ARREST WARRANT APPLICATION

 
 
I have to say, this is not what I expected, but everyone is innocent until proven guilty and I think there is still a lot more to come out on this.

The following statement was issued by Hartford's Fire Chief Reginald Freeman this afternoon


FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE:
Arresting Affidavit
 
Here is the official statement from Fire Chief Reginald Freeman regarding the today’s arraignment and released affidavit:
 
“I am conducting a thorough investigation into any improper conduct related to this incident in conjunction with other city agencies. The Hartford Fire Department expects all employees to live by the highest ethical and professional standards at all times.  There is absolutely zero tolerance for the kind of illegal activity depicted/alleged in the arresting affidavit.   By no means, should this incident be reflective of the hard work and sacrifice that is demonstrated on a daily basis by the men and women of the Hartford Fire Department. After the investigation is complete, if warranted, this administration will determine what disciplinary measures need to be taken.”
 
 
"We serve to save"
 
The arrest warrant application for Jesus Perez:
 
 

Sunday, July 2, 2017

THIS WEEK'S "WE THE PEOPLE" PROGRAM

VISION OR DIVISION?

Several years ago when Richard Blumenthal was Connecticut's Attorney General, the joke used to be "Where is the most dangerous spot in Connecticut?" The punch line was "Between Blumenthal and a TV camera".

I think we can update that joke now to "Where is the most dangerous spot in Washington DC?". And the punch line will have to be "between Senator Blumenthal and Senator Murphy and a TV camera"

As I sit here thinking about the July 4th holiday coming up this week, I am pretty confident that the nation we are today is a far cry from what our founders envisioned. We are supposed to be a "representative Democracy", but sadly I think very few of the people we elect actually represent us.

Yes, Washington DC is a mess, I don't think anyone can deny that. That mess did not start on January 20th with the Inauguration of Donald Trump, it has been a mess for years, if not decades.

I don't think our elected officials  comprehend that they were elected to represent US! They have lost sight of why they are there. We don't elect "parties". We elect individuals, and the business of partisan politics is killing this country. So many issues are stuck in a partisan quagmire, instead of being based in what is best for us, the citizens.

Congress is elected to set the laws that are supposed to guide a "nation of laws. So why aren't they doing it? Did Congress only realize that after a new President came into office on January 20th that our immigration laws are broken? The same with our tax laws and Healthcare laws?

Is it wrong for an Administration to choose to enforce laws that are on the books and have been ignored for many years?

Instead of running for the TV cameras, maybe, just maybe, the officials we  elect to represent us should be coming together and coming up with a compromise  to introduce and pass laws that actually work for and not hurt the people they are supposed to represent.

Instead of running to the Sunday morning talk shows with your soundbites, show some leadership and come up with workable solutions. What works with the Affordable Care Act and come up with a consensus as to what is wrong and fix it. Look at what is wrong with immigration and fix it so that people who actually want to eventually be productive American citizens have a workable pathway to get there.

How about a period of amnesty for people who are here illegally? A 1 year  period to get into the Federal system and come out of the shadows. If you aren't in the process after 1 year, all bets are off and deportation is a likely end, but at least give people the chance to get started. 30 years in the US illegally doesn't indicate to me a desire to be a citizen, but at least they should be offered the option before being deported

Passing legislation for the people  may not help someones political career, but maybe it might help the same people who put their trust in you when they elected you.

I have received two e-mails this past week from the Congressman who is supposed to represent me telling me how he needed my help to assist him in getting the job done as he tries to do his job in Washington. And that help was requested in the form of a donation to his campaign. WHY? Is the salary he makes not enough to accomplish his job? Is his healthcare in danger of cancellation if I don't send a "contribution".

We need to start electing people that actually want to represent us and not climb to the next rung on their ladder of political aspirations.

Fight the tough fights when they need to be fought, but also be willing to show some real leadership and represent us when it is so sorely needed. It is what our founding fathers expected when they put their own lives on the line to "build a more prefect Union". And we are far from perfect right about now.

Saturday, June 24, 2017

HPD CAUGHT WITH THEIR PANTS DOWN

And no, that title has nothing to do with the former Commander of the Hartford Police Academy.(Although it could)

No this posting is more about the incompetence that allowed HPD and the Hartford Police Headquarters to be plunged into darkness and a crisis situation last night. Now you would think that a Deputy Police Chief charged with the maintenance and operation of police headquarters would likely maintain a checklist for critical items,

 1. Emergency generator tested and operational, check yes or no, if no schedule emergency maintenance
2. Uninterruptable power supply for radio system, tested and operational- check yes or no. if no schedule immediate service before radio system crashes during a power outage

I could go on and on, but that is why we pay Deputy Chiefs very large salaries to manage the PD. Any DC could probably call the smallest police department in the state and ask them to email their  checklist and put it on City letterhead and it would most likely be much better than what HPD currently has in place by the looks of it.

Last night, disaster was averted in Hartford, but not because of any pre-planning or preparation. More likely we got lucky.

Due to a power outage last night because of several transformer failures by Eversource equipment, HPD's headquarters was plunged into darkness when the backup generator failed or provided very  limited power to the Complex. The outage affected both telephone and radio operations and eventually, dispatchers were transported to East Hartford PD with portable radios to answer 911 calls that were diverted to our neighbor over the river. The dispatchers also carried with them a large amount of paper pads to keep  track of what they were doing.

No case numbers or routine information could be provided to officers in the field until about 1PM this afternoon when the systems began coming back on line. Officers couldn't complete any reports as all of the computers at Headquarters were down.

According to one source at HPD, the generator may have been restricted to limited power by a vendor over unpaid bills. I will work on that Monday with  an FOI request, but considering the City's financial situation and chronic mismanagement, it sounds reasonable, and I know the emergency generator has worked in the past.

Maybe it is time for someone to break out their City credit  card and pay the bill before the power goes down again

I also have to wonder where  was HPD's nearly million dollar command post that sits idle and rusting in the parking lot except for the one or two days a year it is currently used, Maybe the same Deputy  Chief responsible for testing the generator should also loosen the grip on the keys to the Command Post and train a few more people how to start and set it up in case of an emergency.  ..

According to HPD sources, numerous other problems arose during the failure. The access control system to unlock the entry doors into the building failed , and officers  were instructed to come to the front lobby as those were the only doors they were able to unlock. But apparently locks on some other doors didn't have the same issue. Sources advised me that when the systems failed, all of the doors on the jail cells in booking did unlock immediately . Now how could that be a problem, they are only jail cells Hopefully whoever designed that system doesn't do any work in our prisons.

But then again it was a slow night in booking sine officers were advised to avoid making any arrests since the cameras and fingerprint scanners and booking computers wren;t working. I guess no one could find the ink pad and print cards and roll the fingerprints the old fashioned way. Modern technology.

But to be fair, the Deputy Chief who should have been  supervising the systems that crashed last night, apparently is caught up in the investigation of the former Academy Commander, so he has his hands full. With failures like this , Acredidation seems like a long shot .

Monday, June 12, 2017

SETTING THE RECORD STRAIGHT

This past week on the blog and on Facebook has been very active and a lot has been said about HPD and claims made against specific officers, some good and some bad.

Specifically, people have made comments regarding on retired officer in particular, Sergeant Sean Spell.

One comment said that Spell had 15 citizen complaints made against him. The local media has also made the same claims, but apparently no one went any further to actually look  at the complaints or God forbid, actually explain them.  I guess explanations don't make headlines and sell papers.

You never hear anyone saying that if a Police Officer doesn't have citizen complaints, they probably aren't doing their job very well. Well, let me say it. Any Police Officer that doesn't occasionally have a complaint filed against them isn't doing their job.

Let's put this into perspective. Typically most  contact we have with a police officer doesn't usually evolve into a warm and fuzzy encounter. It may be after an accident, and I don't know anyone that is in a great mood after an accident (especially if you had to wait a couple hours for an Officer to be dispatched. Not their fault, but they get the blame) Or maybe you got a traffic ticket or a parking ticket. Now we all know how we drive, and of course we could never be wrong, the Cop must be overreaching or trying to fill some nonexistent quota.

You hardly ever get pulled over by a cop wanting to give you a coupon to Starbucks for exceptional driving. I think you get my point, it does happen, but most people don't have raving reviews of their Police interaction, so citizen complaints are part of the job. Every complaint is entertained and investigated, no matter how serious or ridiculous, they get the same response.

 So I decided to ask the questions and see how serious those 15 complaints were. So here you go; I am not putting the complainants names though

#1- HPD IAD #200-44 Profane language used by Officer Spell on Barbour Street
                          COMPLAINT WITHDRAWN BY COMPLAINANT

#2- HPD IAD #2006-101- alleged excessive force used at Substation
                           NOT SUSTAINED AFTER INVESTIGATION

#3- HPD IAD #2007-050 Bondsman loitering at HPD, verbal for procedure, no Field Interview Card submitted
                            COMPLAINT NOT SUSTAINED AFTER INVESTIGATION

#4- HPD IAD #2007-050 Wrecker driver claimed discourteous attitude
WITNESSES PRESENT DID NOT CORROBORATE WRECKER  DRIVERS  VERSION
                        COMPLAINT NOT SUSTAINED AFTER INVESTIGATION

#5-HPD IAD #2007-118 Off Duty Altercation
  Complaint Sustained-
                             30 Day Suspension for Conduct Unbecoming an Officer

#6- HPD IAD #2007-139- Harassment complaint
                            EXONERATED AFTER INVESTIGATION

#7-HPD IAD #2008-026 Complaint made by Wethersfield resident who saw Spell leave his personal car idleing in a parking lot while off duty
                                         NO ACTION TAKEN BY HPD

#8-HPD IAD# 2008-048 Complaint against Spell and another Officer after a prisoner attempted to escape from a substation  after a firearms arrest.
                            COMPLAINT NOT SUSTAINED- EXONERATED

#9- HPD IAD #2008-069- Complaint made against numerous officers at 23 Martin Street after incident.
       NO SPECIFIC COMPLAINT IMPLICATING SPELL, BUT  STILL PLACED IN                                                   HIS   FILE

#10- HPD IAD 2008-103  Spell was the supervisor, complaint made against an officer he was supervising

#11  HPD IAD# 2008-161- Citizen approached Spell to report her purse lost, while Spell and other officers were breaking up a melee at Club 960 on Main Street on Christmas then a vehicle being pursued crashed in the same are and complainant felt she wasn't getting proper service during the chaos
                     EXONERATED AFTER INVESTIGATION

#12-  HPD IAD#  2012-073- Stolen car recovered, complainant apparently claimed money was missing from the center console when the vehicle was recovered. Since she knew the thief that took the car, she complained that it had to be Spell and the Chief Inspector from the States Attorney's Office who were responsible.
   COMPLAINT WITHDRAWN AFTER COMPLAINANT "FOUND " THE MISSING MONEY

#13-  HPD IAD#2012-083- Complaint made against 2 Officer's Spell was supervising

#14- HPD IAD #2014-006- Force complaint made after arrest of subject high on PCP
                                     NOT SUSTAINED

#15- HPD IAD #2014-100- Complaint made claiming Spell interfered with a civilian photographer at a Homicide scene on Park Street
                                       
#16-  HPD IAD #2015-074 Complaint made against  Spell and CSP Trooper after arrest of individual who kicked an HPD vehicle during West Indian event
                          EXONERATED BY HPD IAD CIVILIAN INVESTIGATOR

So there is the list, and it is actually 16, not 15. Only one incident concerns me, and Sgt. Spell paid for that error with a 30 day suspension.

Sean Spell is one of many officers that earned every penny they made keeping our City safe and our officers are human beings, and yes occasionally human beings make mistakes. But not everything is as it appears to be made out to be.

The research might take a while to complete, but it is part of being fair.

.