In a publicly sparse City Council chambers Thursday night, three finalists for chief of police spent three grueling hours addressing questions from members of the City Council who must approve the five-year contract after Mayor Joe Ganim selects the next top cop, likely in November.
See City Council interview police chief finalists here.
This marathon, akin to a congressional hearing, was much more revealing than the first public vetting session Tuesday night at Central High School when the questions were generally sanitized. Thursday night the questions and responses were sharper edged with the finalists issuing subtle and pointed rejoinders in how they would handle overtime, deployment, morale, recruitment, patrols and post-midnight drinking establishments.
Clearly, one come-away that blazed is the frosty relationship between Acting Chief Rebeca Garcia and Captain Lonnie Blackwell, even if you don’t know the history. Garcia has marginalized Blackwell to effectively an administrative jockey away from commanding the nuts and bolts of the department.
For now retired, former Captain Roderick Porter seemed to be of the mind some distance from the department adds a refreshing perspective to pinpoint management decisions to reform the department particularly, as he noted, overtime abuses that waste taxpayer dollars.
He seemed to edge away from the Garcia-Blackwell fray.
Garcia was clearly frosted by Blackwell’s morale assertions diminishing the ranks of the department. She countered that cops are leaving the department for other municipalities urged by commanders to flee.
Bridgeport is not exclusive to recruitment and departure issues. Many departments in Connecticut and across the country experience the same as law enforcement has come under fire and scrutiny over high profile cases.
The cost of health insurance premiums to cops also is among the mix of reasons for Bridgeport defections.
Thursday night provided Ganim some extra questions to ponder as he settles on one of the three. If he chooses Blackwell who arguably has the strongest connection with the community given his various roles in the department, how does that impact the future of Garcia? She had the rank of assistant chief when Ganim promoted her acting top cop after Armando Perez resigned in the aftermath of the 2018 police chief testing scam.
Superior Court Judge Barry Stevens has ruled that the non-competitive process that the city utilized to appoint Garcia assistant chief was illegal. The city has appealed that ruling. What friction complications exist if Blackwell is number one and Garcia remains number two, assuming she stays on board.
If Ganim sticks with Garcia the internal politics of the department including grievances from black officers that she plays favorites with Hispanic cops will not go away. In addition she’s not of the mind to face the community music when the department is confronted with noisy public issues such as the storm early this year over timely police notification of family deaths. She took a vacation during the apex of the controversy.
Right now of the three Porter is the safest choice for Ganim. He, like Blackwell, enjoys advanced degrees that escape Garcia. Porter also finished in the top three during the tainted 2018 exam, so he has history for testing success.
He’s also the most understated of the three.
On Tuesday the public gets one more public look at this vetting process at Harding High School.
Soon after that Ganim will interview each candidate individually with an eye on next year when he goes before the voters for another four-year term. The last thing he wants is a police department on fire during the dog days of summer.
Advice to the three finalists: think about that during your interview with Ganim.
I am sure the department’s social workers’ division would have de-escalated this 911 call.
I’m skeptical about the extent of the luring aspect though. It makes it sound like both brothers plotted and planned this ambush. But the reporting seems to only suggest one suspect, and a shooter with one gun, an AR15.
It could be that the brothers got into an agreement, about whatever. One called the cops, the one in the hospital, and the other brother just said fuck it when the cops came and opened fire. Which would seem to wonder, how/why/who, the second brother got shot.
It was quoted in a new report that a witness heard someone say you shot them. That could have been the brother who called the cops, who else could it be?
How this all went down, who knows? Time will tell, I guess. At least some version of it. JS
P.S De-escalating is not the proper word/term to use when addressing police abuse of power. It is more of escalating, to an arrest. Which can account for the “bias” behavior of officers’ abuse of power that is on the front of police accountability/racism of law enforcement. I mean there’s not much de-escalation when a person has/going to be arrested and refuse to cooperate.JS
At any rate, Good luck, people, 5000
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-Hsl5UG9O_c&t=77s
“Argument” about whatever.
It’s amazing how one misplace, or used word changes the meaning of everything. 5000.
It was quoted in teh press that state elected officials said this shooting/departure is a “monstrous crime that is unforgiven”. I guess in some minds it is. I am sure within law enforcement is it for many with that sentiment, but many might think/feel differently about a cop kneeling on someone’s kneck for 8 minutes as he begs for his to breathe and calls out for his momma, until his death, as not as monstrous and unforgiven. I am sure that based on the racial, or law enforcement lens people view the world, perspectives vary.
At any rate, not wanting to get too into the public/political aspect/game of these departed souls from this reality. But the irony in that statement in the press by our elected official is poetic. On one hand, they are calling this an unforgivable act, (without a doubt agreed by those in law enforcement,) and on the other hand, they asking people and sending their thoughts and prayers to families and friends, considering you would assume those prayers are meant for Jesus, who forgiveness is his thing. Except for Sen. Murphy, just thoughts no prayers.
At any rate, peace out. Time will tell, how long, who knows, good luck.
I depart with the prophet Eminem.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ul-b1-ar0p0
P.S As for tints on cop cars.🚓That visibility swings both ways, people. 😎
Me and boys were partying/hanging out one night🧑🤝🧑 and decided to go to Lake Forest for a swim.🏊 We “borrowed” a boat ⛵ and went out on the lake. The cops were called, 👮the fighter department showed up.🚒 We tried to wait them out as they stayed out front. Long story short, the boat flipped, and let’s say we (I ) had to swim for the shore, like in Virgil’s Divine Comedy.📖
https://www.youtube.com/watch?time_continue=200&v=zETPEbrrPyo&feature=emb_logo
At the end of the day,🌒 we got arrested and were brought downtown for booking. The issue was we didn’t have shorts, we went in our underwear. Teh cops took us, as is. 🤣
Me and my boy got handcuffed together,⚯ placed in the car for the ride down town.🏛️
This is where the tints on the patrol cars come in. 🚓There was a big fight or commotion going on in front of the New Colony Dinner on lower Main Street. 🚓The arresting cop 👮rolled up on this massive crown in the parking lot, like he was Moses parting the sea, ✡️ got out went into dinner for a cup of coffee. ☕
P.S It was the 90s before it was fashionable, I was sporting my leopard speedo underwear, 🩲Mike with this classic white Fruit of the Looms, handcuffed together in the back of a patrol car, in a sea of people looking at us while the arresting officer goes in the dinner for a cup of coffee.🤣
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=D5E23GxcVHA
Peace out people, I am out of here. Y’all stuck on the anger bridge. I don’t have time for such negativate. 🙂 Good luck.
In watching round 2 of 3, former Captain Porter seemed to be a good candidate that I liked and steered away from the Garcia Vs. Blackwell feud. However, I also took Captain Porter up on his offer to “look him up / google him” on the topic of being “honest, trustworthy, and full of integrity.”
What I found on google was disturbing that Captain Porter was the division commander, where a former Police Lieutenant under his command spent more time at home than at work. Also, from reading the affidavit, I found that Captain Porter’s “negligence” is what allowed this to go on for some time. Mighty funny would tell the public to google you, and we found this out when reading the affidavit. You were made aware of this Lieutenants behavior and habit of not coming to work, and when he did, he only spent a few minutes of the day at work, and you allowed it? Nevertheless, you want us to trust you with a $100 plus Million dollar budget when you could not even get this, right? After being notified on numerous occasions?
https://www.ctpost.com/local/article/Affidavit-cop-spent-more-time-at-home-than-at-12614784.php
I also learned that you sheltered an unregistered sex offender in your home in 2015. Captain Porter, you were in charge of overseeing the public schools and School Resource Officers at that time, weren’t you? Was this ok in your eyes?
https://www.ctpost.com/local/article/Sex-offender-living-with-Bridgeport-police-captain-5988022.php
http://onlyinbridgeport.com/wordpress/ct-post-sex-offender-living-with-police-captain/
All I have to say Is that I see that the Garcia Vs. Blackwell fray will get more heated as the days pass and we get closer to a decision from JG2.
Well, I guess this is what we get out of a “Nationwide Search.”
Alveres
I think you made some valid points about Porter’s prospects. Not with standard, he seemed to flank Finch and Gaudett in Ganim’s comeback election when addressing crime. He also was passed over by Ganim for AJ in the last police chief appointment. He came in 4th in this one and only made it because a Reene took another position, bumping him up.
That sex offender, Fast-Pass program to keep registered sex offenders away from schools’ critique might be subjective. Just taking his nephew in, who when to jail for a sex crime against a minor and had nowhere to go after getting out of prison doesn’t make it an invalid charge to promote such a system.
It’s relevant, in fact, you can make the claim because he was close to a sex offender who committed a sexual crime against a minor who is staying/living with him, by a city school, which would make him more understanding of it.
Not wanting to get into the specifics of this case, but the need for males to generate a sexual biological release is, well, let’s say there’s a reason there are sex buses all over town that are subject to being publicized on social media. I mean, it’s called the oldest profession for women for a reason Well, depending on how fashionable it is in the world of nonbinary we find ourselves in.
Besides, Porter’s already retired from the department. He claimed he left because of Garcia. So where does that put her if he was to get teh position of Chief of police?
At any rate, Lennie’s assessment, at least the way I read it, seems to put Porter as a better choice for Ganim, based on race, specifically, grievances from black officers, the Guardians. Claiming she plays favorites with Hispanic cops.
Or Garcia is not minded facing the community’s music when the department is confronted with noisy public issues such as the firestorm of timely police notification of family death. She may have taken a vacation during the apex of that controversy, but the reality was that storm was based on race, specifically white and black, considering the national media storm and public outcry were only generated because Lauan’s untimely death happened when she was in the company of a white person. Branda’s untimely death proved that. It was extremely similar and happens on the same day that went virtual silent. Most people learned about Brenda at the march on city hall for Lauan. The national media that fueled this storm cared little, or nothing about Branda’s untimely death even though locally it was reported on just like Lauran’s.
Garcia’s brownness allowed her to take her vacation. I couldn’t see a White Chief going on vacation in such a Strom. JS
What’s not going away is Joe’s whiteness in his election coming up. I guess you can say the race card too, it’s always there, for the play.
Based on the three, Garcia has always seemed to be the safest political choice. He doesn’t upset the Hispanic voting block. The black officers, “Guardians” can make the charge against Joe/white about him choosing Garcia over a black person in the upcoming election, but how well/effective will the race card/emotional vote be on blacks?
I mean, while Joe is white, Garcia is brown. It’s hard to say this racist Latino is not treating blacks fairly, and it is this white guy. So black people vote for this person not Joe without having collateral damage to conjure up emotional Latino votes. Because that’s basically what that race card is going to say about Garcia as chief being appointed by Joe. I would think.
To be fair, Guardians/NAACP did say this racist Latino was being racist to white cops too. I mean unfair. 🙂
Wonder how that charge is going to affect the white vote in Blackrock. 🙂
Notwithstanding the black officer who is vying for the position has been implicated in creating a racist letter charging the white officers in the department of being racist.
How does that account for the department’s police morale among its officers? 🙂
But at the end of the day, the unfair political card of a Latino chief is “unfair” to black officers. Will have to be stumbled to feed the base take is always been against him. Teh benefit of a Blackwell (black) over a Garcia (Latino/Brown) would seem to be marginal. Joe would seem to still have his black votes who came out for him against Moore and then some, regardless of Garcia (brown) as chief, but the negative impact on Latinos to throw a Latino, Garcia under the bus because of the Black outcry by the Black origination like the Guardian may have.
At any rate, do You want to hear something crazier about politics? A NYC Congressional Candidate running for Congress uploaded his own porno to promote that oldest profession, as a campaign strategy in his bid to win the election. Bridge be damned, Convoy be damned, Sex bus be damned. WWWHHHAT 🙂
https://www.complex.com/life/nyc-congressional-candidate-mike-itkis-releases-sex-tape
BTW, speaking about Jobs, morale, porn, the oldest profession, and the root (stereotype) of black/white racism, because if you think about skin tone, it might be off base. Considering, that Olive is the best skin tone. However, in this world “fashionableness/fabulousness/scissoring. ” in the end, for better or worse, does it really matter to people? (outside physical abuse of course)
At any rate, before my absentee father step out for a pack of cigarettes and told me I was a genius, who had a little penis, and had to learn how the lick a 😻 and not hit women. You can imagine my morale in speaking/picking up the ladies. 🙂 Rajesh Hootharappali of the Big Bang Theory.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iWEAFdYFKr0
You can say angerness too, but when I got into my brother’s porn stash I was relieved to not be the only one with a small penis. Still didn’t help my game with the ladies though. Thus I turned the comedy, oriental bus, as my preferred mechanism to “relate” to ladies. 🤣
Until I saw this movie and learned how male porn performers are cast. By then I was already out of the game if I ever was in it, Thanks, Father. SMH
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YN7pcEa83dU
P.S best of luck in getting that job. SMH 🙂