Union backs wrong candidate

As a retired New Haven detective with 27 years of service, including union vice president and Grievance Committee chairman, I take strong exception to the New Haven police union’s recent leadership decision to publicly support U.S. Rep. Rosa DeLauro’s Republican opponent [courant.com, Oct. 12, “Stung by accountability bill, Connecticut police unions target the ‘yes’ votes”]. Fact: For decades, Rosa has always been there for police in funding essential equipment while legislating for their safety. Her influence secured significant federal funding in the early 1990s to establish one of the nation’s first community police programs in New Haven — a model that the current mayor wholeheartedly endorses.

So, what caused such an irrational decision? Was it due to her common-sense background checks and opposition to assault weapons following the killing of 20 first-graders at Sandy Hook in five minutes by a 20-year-old with a Bushmaster XM15E2S rifle and 10 magazines with 30 rounds each? The congresswoman led a seven-year battle with the NRA, finally securing $25 million to prevent gun violence in 2019. Or was it her co-sponsoring the Justice in Policing Act 2020 that bands chokeholds and no-knock warrants while requiring improved police transparency, investigation of police misconduct and making lynching a federal crime — all elements central to a police officer’s sacred oath to equally protect.

This president has severely defunded police within municipalities while encouraging militias and white supremacists, making the police job even more difficult. Never in my years as a union member have I witnessed a more ill-conceived endorsement — a betrayal to police officer’s long-time, dedicated friend.

Thomas F. Morrissey Jr., Cheshire