Two Public Forums This Week For Police Chief Finalists

The first community forum to assess Acting Chief Rebeca Garcia, Captain Lonnie Blackwell and retired Captain Roderick Porter for top cop will take place Tuesday, 6 p.m. at Central High School.

News release from Mayor’s Office:

Early last week Mayor Ganim announced a timeline for soliciting feedback from elected officials and the public regarding who should be chosen as the next Bridgeport Chief of Police. City officials want to remind residents the importance of attending these forums and provide constructive feedback as Mayor Ganim consider these three candidates. Both Community Forums will be live streamed through the City of Bridgeport’s Facebook page.

The City of Bridgeport has established an email address (policechiefsearch@bridgeportct.gov in which elected officials and members of the public may provide feedback to the Mayor on the top 3 candidates. People may also submit feedback in writing by sending it to the Office of the Mayor at 999 Broad Street, Bridgeport, CT 06604. Feedback will be accepted until October 28th.

Police Chief Selection Timeline:

October 11: Community Forum at Central High School @ 6pm

October 13: City Council Forum at City Council Chambers @ 6pm

October 18: Community Forum at Harding High School @ 6pm

October 20: Meeting with City Department Heads and Members of the Bridgeport Legislative Delegation at City Hall Annex @ 12pm

Late October/Early November: Mayor will interview the top 3 candidates.

By Mid-November: Mayor will announce his choice for Chief of Police.

More information on the background of the forum may be found on the City’s website at www.bridgeportct.gov/BPDChief2022.

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11 comments

  1. MAYOR’S OFFICE–NEWS RELEASE……..
    Mayor soliciting ‘feedback’? Don’t you have to have energy from one individual or site to get FEEDBACK?? The timeline set out for gatherings has not provided much info around the context in which the Mayor will make this decision, the process that each candidate survived and scored high on to make the top three, and the exact instructions to the IACP. Why is that not provided to the public at this time?
    Furthermore, aides to the Mayor want ‘CONSTRUCTIVE FEEDBACK’, not just any old feedback. What an unusual request, at an unusual moment for the public who is provided such moments: Seldom, frequently, when requested, not in recent memory, not unless you can come up with $75 to listen to the STATE OF THE CITY?
    Perhaps Ganim2 is experimenting with hearing from AND responding to the people? Or not? Time will tell.

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  2. God willing Acting Chief Garcia’s time within the Bridgeport Police Department will be coming to an end soon. In seeing the news it’s very sad that the Acting Chief had three people shot last night downtown and one of those victims died. Today instead of doing anytime of press conference which would be expected of a police chief. Guess where Acting Chief Garcia is at? A so called community Spanish Heritage Police brunch trying to be community oriented. Now??? Where are you on these real issues within our city (crime and the uptick in gun violence) that is taking the lives of young people every day. Acting Chief Garcia, you should be embarrassed to even put on that uniform with those Chief Stars and Chief badge. You didn’t deserve it when you received it illegally then and you sure don’t deserve it now. They city of Bridgeport needs to do something and something fast because the citizens of this city are suffering everyday over tragedies like this occurring way too often. Acting Chief Garcia what is your response? What are you going to do to help stop this violence within our city? You’ve been quiet way to long now!! You should be embarrassed of yourself and how you don’t care. I would pray if you have a heart you reach out finally to a family of victims and show some compassion. Since over the past 3 years you have given us the citizens your ______ you know what to kiss. Dam shame.
    Don’t do to this family as you’ve done the other victims of this city and have gone silent on the issues. There are plenty of way to get a message out ACTING CHIEF.

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    1. Why do you say God willing? What does God have to do with a promotion within the BPD? Are you asking or suggesting/hoping for God’s intervention? What happened ot humanity’s FREEWILL?

      Are you insinuating though that with Porter or Blackwell becoming a top manager of the BPD there will be no more shootings in the Port? Does anyone honestly believe that?

      Or are you saying Garcia is to blame for these shootings?

      Your post seems political in nature, with a tinge of racism, and the exploration of a triple shooting that lead to a person’s death. Honestly speaking, maybe prays are needed in a broader scope of understanding, God willing, hoping, @FREEWILL.

      (A promotion is not really the heavy lifting of humanity’s existence from annihilating itself/existence, considering) @FREEWILL-ISH)

      P.S There are probable others’ prayers for her to get it too that’s on the other political spectrum. What will of God should be applied in such prayers in this appointment? 🙂

      https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RrxAgOXj5pE&t=196s

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    2. Honestly? “She had three people shot”? Like most law abiding people, I’m sure the Chief was with people she cared about. You just sound dumb. Stop please.

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      1. Chief Garcia, had these three people shot? Is that what you are saying? You may be a law-abiding citizen but are you being honest?

        It’s not as dumb as it sounds if you are honest with yourself. Maybe you should become an “Honest” law-abiding citizen. Whatever code wording that means, perhaps the world be a better place, God willing. JS

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        1. R.T.,

          I try not to argue with anyone who spends most days arguing with themselves on this website. Keep up the good work! But, I was replying to the guy… thus the quotation marks.

          Law abiding isn’t code for anything. 🙄 Yikes.

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          1. Ok, but it seemed you answered my question when I said. “Does anyone honestly believe that”? When you started your reply with “Honestly”?

            No argument here. We are still friends, right,? But quotations could mean a number of things, in their “context”. No?

            I hear duck can be a code word 🤣
            https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6C4ZV4TW86g

            “HONESTLY” speaking, so can “Law-abiding citizens” At the very least, it seems to be. God willing, we can probably add Good and Great too, considering I watched people go at it on Facebook about if God was Good or Great. JS

            https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PIwZVG5wMi8

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  3. What I am saying is that she had three people shot under her command with one person dying as a result in the early morning hours and she has not done a press conference to address it. The only Chief that I see that is allowed to hide away from the media and cameras time after time. A press conference would be expected by a Police Chief to address issues and concerns that are happening while she is in the “Acting Chief” capacity. We want to see our Acting Chief front and center addressing the concerns of us taxpayers and assuring us that she is doing everything she can to stop the violence or say anything. Saying something is better than hiding in her office and not address the community and the victims’ families of these crimes. She needs to show some compassion for these families a loss of life is a loss of life for any mother and family regardless how or what you think.

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    1. Well, a lot of people can show more compassion instead of politicizing it too.

      What I am saying, based on your assessment of Garcia. If Porter or Blackwell were to gain command do you think there would be no more shootings in the Port?

      We can debate the productivity of press conferences, outside of the politicization of it, but if you want a more tangible result for the community, families, and “taxpayers” I would say to solve the crimes committed. That isn’t always easy when victims sometime are uncooperative, but that’s a street thing. No, I am not talking about Council Member Castillo.

      But if you like we can debate the productivity of press conferences and their politicization of them. It is not like the Port doesn’t have them, we had plenty

      https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OGYVhvRXEsk&list=PLLsjr_hqBHTISQ-j0iD0sCyK3ixS2AoHn&index=10

      P.S if the victim is young enough you might see the compasses of not just the chief of police, and local elected officials, but the state federal officials and governor’s office out front and center addressing the concerns of the taxpayers and assuring us that they are doing everything to stop the violence. JS

      https://www.middletownpress.com/middletown/article/Lamont-signs-gun-safety-bills-reaffirms-13961855.php

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  4. Final thoughts on the matter.

    Benjamin, I say tinge of racism because it’s a heavily played card in the Democrat Party’s playbook for votes in America’s democracy. It can be difficult at times when there’s not a Republican/white in sight and the political game that is being played is between black and brown, minorities. While the race card is there and played, it is delicately more compassionately expressed than if it is a white person, outright.

    As to my law-abiding friend, Vagabond, that tinge can swing both ways in silence. When it’s in the political realm. When I hear the words, law-abiding citizens/people you are immediately taken back to Republicans/white, gun control, and the 2nd amendment, like a montage.

    https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NJi4Chbe_ZQ&t=289s

    By no means am I saying there shouldn’t be gun legislation. In fact, (IMO) the 2nd amendment was written in the spirit of gun control for the states to heavily arm their citizens to rise up and fight the newly form Federal Governmental System after the first American constitution was rewritten, which created it.

    What I am saying is Schedule I drugs like fentanyl heroin cocaine are completely regulated to be completely illegal. Yet it still finds its way onto the streets. So what is the difference between a kilo of cocaine and a gun? So when you have over-extended regulation on guns it generally will have no bearing on the non-law abiding citizen access.

    But that being said, that “tinge” of silence and lack of press conference can be deafening when it is political in nature to keep the political game and the political masses in their respective bubble. for better or worse. JS

    https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=n7PzfcWh4rA

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