From Mayor’s Office:
This evening, the City of Bridgeport Emergency Operations Center received a call regarding an incident that occurred at the University of Bridgeport. The call detailed an instance that involved multiple parties in which an altercation occurred. The Bridgeport Police Department quickly responded to the scene and discovered one victim with a non-life-threatening gunshot wound. At this time, the Bridgeport Police Department is actively investigating this matter but would like to assure residents of the South End and parents of students that attend the University of Bridgeport that there is currently no active threat.
City Council President, Aidee Nieves, stated, “On behalf of the City, I’d like to thank the Bridgeport Police Department and the Bridgeport Emergency Operations Center for their rapid response and securing of the University campus, along with students. The safety of the University students, faculty, and nearby residents is paramount to us all within the City. We want to reassure families that their children are secure, and this was an isolated incident”
Bridgeport Police Chief, Roderick Porter, stated, “I would like to give a special thank you to our Detective Bureau and all officers who responded to the scene in a swift manner. The partnership we’ve maintained with the University of Bridgeport has allowed us to react to this isolated incident as quickly as possible; and we want to reassure students, parents, faculty, and Bridgeport residents that the area is safe. To further strengthen the security of the area, police presence will be maintained on the University of Bridgeport campus until the suspect is brought to justice. “
University of Bridgeport President, Danielle Wilken, stated, “Thank you to the Bridgeport Police Department, UB Security Team, and first responders for the endless commitment to the UB community. Campus safety is our number one priority. We appreciate all the love and outpouring of support from our local officials — including the Mayor’s Office, City Council, and state delegation who have all offered their support. It is important to note that neither the victim nor the shooter are UB students but were visitors on campus. As Chief Porter said, this is an isolated incident. We continue to take strong measures to ensure the safety of our community, and we will follow the directives of the Bridgeport Police Department.
We are fortunate, certainly, that this incident of campus ‘outsiders’ visiting the UB campus and partaking of services devolved seemingly into gunfire. Twenty four hours previously, the Cox Center had been the location for a message about “Use of Force by Police officers throughout CT” that was well attended by folks who participated in the questions and answers session.
Public safety and property security are two of the missions of the Bridgeport Police Force. Assuming that UB continues to maintain an otherwise “open campus” on its attractive grounds for the community in general, perhaps this will appear as a ‘hiccup’. But the community-at-large needs to consider the understanding of citizens who feel they can visit any site in the community, carry a weapon legally or otherwise, and use it to dispose of personal issues with another citizen (that may endanger those in proximity) indicates a failure to communicate a sense of obligation equal to the sense of ‘my rights’. How does a community change such anti-neighbor assumptions and habits? Where is CIVICS taught? And learned? In Bridgeport? Time will tell.
FORTUNATE that injury was limited, though fear was sowed. How long will the negative prevail/ Time will tell.
Our precious, once thriving and (of outstanding reputation) university has been abused and neglected — and pushed over the edge — by City Hall policy (and the lack thereof) regarding the nurturing and promotion of this extremely vital city asset. In particular the Ganim and Finch Administrations have caused much damage to this university with policies of religious prejudice and anti-expansionism that have rendered this institution endangered.
Bridgeport has only three institutions that offer any sort of socioeconomic redemption to this declining city — our two hospitals (formerly three) and our university. If we don’t take drastic action to promote UB and make it a viable, independent institutions once again, we will be down to two only worthwhile institutions propping up our dying city.
Does City Hall want UB to die? Are developers still drooling over the seaside options presented by this land? Is the city in collusion with kill this institution to free-up land for greedy developers? (Too many real estate developers connected to City Hall?!…)