Chief must pay for crash

Bronin reprimands Thody after collision while in city vehicle

Hartford Mayor Luke Bronin announced Monday that city Police Chief Jason Thody will be required to repay the city for the cost of the repairs following damage to a city-issued vehicle in late May and a formal letter of reprimand will be placed in his personnel file.

The announcement arrived a month and a half after the May 31 car crash in which Thody, driving on Route 154 near the Chester-Haddam town line, struck a guardrail in his Chevrolet Tahoe, resulting in about $3,300 of damage.

Bronin said in a letter to Thody Monday that Thody’s self-reporting of the incident indicated he did not intend to conceal the incident or damage city property. He noted that Thody reported the incident the day it occurred to Thea Montanez, the city’s chief operating officer and his direct supervisor, in addition to documenting the damage.

But Bronin reprimanded Thody for not immediately contacting the local or state police to report the collision, as is required by a city policy for take-home vehicles. He added that while state law exempts law enforcement officers from distracted driving laws, Thody has “an obligation to take greater care” while on the road and using city property. And he admonished Thody and his staff for not placing a “sufficiently high priority on ensuring that the subsequent reporting was as detailed or clear as it should have been.”

Bronin said Monday he deemed the “significant financial cost” of paying for the repairs and a formal letter of reprimand sufficient disciplinary measures, and that he remained confident in Thody’s role as leader of the department.

“To me, this incident remains a case in which there was minor damage to a city vehicle that was promptly reported to a supervisor and documented that same day,” he said.

The city and state police departments have concluded their investigations into the incident, though the city’s independent Internal Audit Commission may decide to investigate the events as well.

Thody does not face criminal charges.

Certain apparent discrepancies between Thody’s own accounts of what happened have prompted outcry among activists and critics of city hall.

Some say that Thody’s differing versions of the incident demonstrate his failure to practice the police accountability and transparency about which he has spoken with protestors during recent demonstrations in the wake of George Floyd’s killing.

Others have questioned

— Hartford Mayor Luke Bronin why Thody was not using a hands-free device while driving his city-issued vehicle.

Hartford city councilman Josh Michtom, a member of the Working Families Party, said he was disappointed that Bronin had not imposed a harsher punishment on Thody. Michtom believes that Thody should resign or be terminated over the incident.

Thody was “not only unwilling to impose consequences on himself but seeming, to my eyes and to many other peoples’ eyes, to actively seek to hide the wrongdoing,” Michtom said.

“That doesn’t seem like a person who’s willing to hold his department to account for wrongdoing, nor a mayor who seems interested in holding his chief to account for that.”

Bronin has defended Thody in recent weeks, though he said last week that “errors of carelessness” had occurred during the incident and the police department’s response to it. Lt. Brian Bowsza’s initial documentation of the incident, for instance, incorrectly reported that Thody reported the crash to state police and that the agency declined to respond or create a case number for the incident.

In a statement earlier this month, Thody said he regretted “not driving more carefully” and not informing the state police of the accident the day it happened. He said he was more focused on protests in Hartford that day than the damage to this vehicle.

Thody did not return a request for comment.

In a 911 call released by state police earlier this month, a witness to Thody’s driving reported seeing a vehicle “flying” along Route 154 and veering “all over the road.”

The caller said the vehicle, which he believed belonged to a law enforcement agency, grazed the guardrail.

He added that he thought the driver was intoxicated.

“He’s going like a bat out of hell,” the man said.

The 911 caller also alleged that Thody almost hit a motorcycle while making a wide turn into Route 154 before hitting the guardrail.

In his official statement to Hartford police, Thody denied being under the influence during the incident.

On Monday evening some Hartford residents spoke out against Thody during the public comment portion of a city council meeting.

Gannon Long, city resident and activist, said it was “unconscionable” that the collision was concealed from officials and the public. Long asked, “Why is the Mayor asking so few questions?” and told the council, “I hope that you all take a lot more interest in this than you have so far.”

Barbara Turner, who described herself as a lifelong city resident, said the chief should be fired immediately.

“Unless you live in a cave,” Turner said, “it’s obvious that he was drinking.”

She also said she was not happy with Bronin’s support of the chief and that the council needs to weigh in.

“You’re not representing us at all with your silence,” Turner said.

Steven Tatum said Bronin’s reprimand fails to restore trust in Thody. Tatum said it looks like the police chief is “getting a pass” that no other citizen could expect.