See News 12 report above.
From CT Post:
Just a few months after making good friend and political ally Armando Perez police chief, Mayor Joe Ganim is hiring a retired top cop from Washington D.C. as a consultant for Bridgeport’s Finest.
Former Chief Charles Ramsey, who heads the consulting group 21st Century Policing Solutions, will be paid $25,000 for up to four months. The price includes expenses.
“I and my team will be looking at the way things are done here and will be making some suggestions here and there,” Ramsey said during a press conference Thursday afternoon in the mayor’s office.
Ramsey said at this point it is too soon to say what procedures in the Police Department need changing and that he first wants to meet with focus groups from the community.
Callie Heilmann, president of social action network Bridgeport Generation Now, said Generation Now is satisfied with Ramsey’s idea on bringing in focus groups. But, she said, she’s hopeful he’ll actually pull in members of the community rather than pre-selected groups.
“I think that that is encouraging, and I hope that he does do that in a real way,” she said.
Full story here.
Ramsey bio:
Charles H. Ramsey led the fourth largest police department in the nation with 6500 sworn and 8 hundred civilian members of the Philadelphia Police Department before he retired from his post on December 31st, 2015. Commissioner Ramsey brings nearly fifty years of law enforcement expertise to 21CP Solutions. He served as Washington, D.C. Police Chief and was a Deputy Superintendent in the Chicago Police Department where he implemented the nationally acclaimed model of community policing called the Chicago Alternative Policing Strategy.
Former Commissioner Ramsey has long been at the forefront of developing innovative policing strategies, evidence-based initiatives, organizational accountability and neighborhood based programs. Working with the Anti-Defamation League and the United States Holocaust Memorial Museum, he led the creation of Law Enforcement & Society: Lessons from the Holocaust.
He is a past President of the Police Executive Research Forum, the Major Cities Chiefs Association, and served on the International Association of Chiefs of Police Executive Committee. In January of 2015, President Barack Obama called on Commissioner Ramsey to co-chair the President’s Task Force on 21st Century Policing.
He has received numerous awards including the John M. Penrith Leadership Award from the FBI National Executive Institute, Leadership awards from the Police Executive Research Forum and the Major Cities Chiefs Association, and the Innovations in American Government Award from Harvard University’s John F. Kennedy School of Government.
Another WTF moment!! And the other elected ones have no say on how the cities money is spent? Or why Adams or others were put in the payroll, etc etc!!! Lets just all keep laughing!
Rich,
I have to agree with you. WTF? Ganim hires his best friend after a “Mock search” for a Police Chief and now he needs a consultant? I wonder if they are going to sit down and chat over a $1000 bottle of vino? What an embarrassment. Thank God I retired when I did. It gets worse on a daily basis. He should have hired me for half the price. Maybe I should run for Mayor? Maybe the Feds will clean house? More to come….. 🍷
OMG…relationship with the community modern safety accreditation………YOU JUST HIRED PEREZ!!!!….THOSE QUESTIONS DIDNT COME UP DURING THE INTERVIEW PROCESS????….MAYBE YOU SHOULD HAVE HIRED MR.RAMSEY……Where is the money coming from…….The school funds????
If Chief Perez needs a consultant to help him carry out his basic job functions, that clearly demonstrates he should not be the police chief.
How much money is going to be poured into the BPD while our 20,400 students are left to starve?
Maria I knew you were going to chime in ………I AGREE A BILLION%…………PART OF HIS JOB DESCRIPTION………..WHY HE GET HIRED!!!!!
Look at the Tax money wasted by these fool’s, Both Joe Ganim and his unfledged Chief should resign!
Community Policing is not new to the department Chief Sweeney had that going back in the early 90’s. They start it up and it goes away manpower and other issues. They get grants to hire cops for Community Policing but soon those Officers get absorbed and are used for patrol functions to fill vacancies without the need for overtime.
There has to be people on his staff that can help with this hiring someone else to do it sends a message that this current staff is not up to the task or he does not trust them. The chief mentioned in another recent article what his staffing level was. The number was low and you are going to need Officers to do this right no need to reinvent the wheel. This will only work if it is properly staffed and properly supervised.
Bridgeport is a city that’s only 19 square miles yet the police department had Gaudette, Adams, Perez and now Charles Ramsey. How many sucker’s does it take to run the BPD, well at least four.
A police consultant from Philadelphia. That’s great, that’s just fucking great. He’ll direct uniformed officers to beat people.
You can tell that it’s election time with Mayor Ganim bringing in Charles Ramsey, “We look forward to Chief Ramsey getting to know the city and providing his professional and vast experience in community policing.” City Council President Aidee Nieves in a brief interview that “Chief Ramsey would be looking at improving the police department’s relationship with the community, implementing more modern public safety strategies, and helping Perez seek accreditation for the department.” What a joke, Bridgeport has had these same problems when Joe Ganim was the mayor during his first term as mayor, there have been consultants and studies of the Bridgeport Police Department that have been used in contract negotiation.
Hopefully Chief Ramsey will look into how AJ Perez was selected by looking into the testing company that David Dunn hired for that nationwide search and the fact that the testing company has never given a police chief exam that has the population and the ethnic makeup of the city. It was no secret that Mayor Ganim wanted AJ Perez to be his police chief so David Dunn found a testing company that would insure that Perez would place in the top three so that Ganim could select Perez.
Ron, Your half right.
Derek- Philly Mayor Rizzo is long gone and the beatings have stopped. Now Philly allows the people to dictate where, how and when to keep the peace. Like every other sanctuary city it’s homeless population has ballooned, drug use and strung out people are all too common, and the populace just seem to take it in stride. People need to open their eyes and not accept inferior and corrupt leadership. Bridgeport can’t afford to add any increases in these seeming common byproducts of community policing. Ergo, Captain Porter May have been the better choice. Just saying…..
Rich, have you wonder why out the top 3 candidate 2 were from here and this was a nationwide search?
It’s a small nation. The other candidate cane as far away as, what was it, New Haven?
Maybe the late actor Paul Newman from Westport had it right about Bridgeport.
Where do I begin???
Let’s start with the obvious. Are they suggestions or recommendations. Big difference and I don’t mean spelling.
Do the “suggestions” go to Ganim first and he decides which ones will be made public when he announces he with implement all of them?
What other consultants were interviewed and why didn’t the contract go to the council? Back in the day, Mark Anastasi would tell me that only the final contract goes to the council. And I would tell him than I’ll vote no because we weren’t included in the selection process.
Since the President of the Police Commission also works for the city, I wouldn’t expect him to buck the boss but shouldn’t this go to the Police Commission first for their approval?
Their input?
When everything is approved without objection, I object.
Callie, or should I say Pollyanna, they have already selected the focus groups and guess what? The focus was not on you. You should have spoken up sooner. Better luck next time.
What other cities have they done? Or better yet, what other cities have they not done?
Or what cities were they in the running but turned down?
Typical Ganim. Enough time to get some press out of but not enough time to gage the effectiveness of the “suggestions.”
Wait a minute. This just in.
Chuck Paris head of the Oilice Union and the recently approved police contract thinks Chief Perez is doing a good job.
Oh well. I guess that dust up in the Chiefs office was just boys being boys.
Could be Ramsey’s coming in to referee the next match in the chiefs office. Anyone know where that fiasco stands now and how much it will cost?!!!!
So the city has money
The city has money for pay raises Joe Ganim and his handpicked City Hall cronies but nothing else.