Violent crime increase seen in cities during pandemic

NEW HAVEN — It will require a collective effort — “all hands on deck” — to address the factors spurring violent crime in Connecticut cities, which has increased during the pandemic.

The words of Stacy Spell, coordinator of Project Longevity in New Haven and a former city detective, were met with approval Friday as he, New Haven Police Chief Otoniel Reyes and other officials took part in a discussion organized by Gov. Ned Lamont to consider crime and law enforcement during the pandemic.

Marc Pelka, undersecretary of the state Office and Policy and Management’s Criminal Justice Policy and Planning Division, and the moderator of Friday’s discussion, said arrests across the state became more common during the pandemic, now up about 7 percent since August; pretrial admissions rose; and shootings increased in New Haven, Hartford, Bridgeport and Waterbury, among other municipalities.

This follows a 38 percent decrease in reported crime in Connecticut between 2009 and 2019, he noted.

Reyes, Waterbury Mayor Neil O’Leary and Waterbury Police Chief Fernando Spagnolo said the pandemic affected the support system for individuals at risk of committing crime, helping give rise to an increase in violent crime and crimes by juveniles.

Among other factors, O’Leary said the pandemic disrupted communication among state agencies; Spagnolo said it had become more difficult for parole and police to meet and intervene with people released from prison, helping them reenter society after time away; and Reyes noted that children without parental support had less guidance with schools closed.

“When people are being released back into our communities from the care of the Department of Correction, it’s important that we continue to support them with services that may have been provided for them in that care, and it’s also imperative for us to understand that they’re coming back to a community that they’ve been separated from for a while — and they may not have a network,” said Spagnolo.

“It may be difficult for them to find medical care, potentially substance abuse treatment if necessary, or behavioral health assistance,” said Spagnolo. “We do our best to try to provide that for them; the pandemic has really struck a chord and kind of halted some of that. We’ve had to find just a way to help provide that assistance to these folks. Some it works, some of it, frankly, doesn’t.”

Reyes, responding to the idea of changing the juvenile review board system, described a recent incident in which two young people were found sleeping in a stolen car with a gun in their possession. Officers “retrieved the gun” from one of their waistbands, he said, and “did a phenomenal job” deescalating a potentially dangerous and tragic scenario.

One of the young people had a warrant for similar outstanding offenses; he had gone missing from home, but the department had not been notified.

“What are the underlying issues that need to be addressed that are leading to this individual continuing to steal cars, continuing to engage in this behavior, that is ultimately going to drive him down a path where he is going to come in contact with law enforcement, where there is going to be a tragedy, either to him or someone else?” Reyes said. “We are identifying these individuals, but we have to connect them with services directly related to the underlying issues impacting these individuals. Otherwise, we’re just spinning our wheels.”

Achilles Generoso, former assistant chief in the New Haven Police Department and the statewide head of Project Longevity, said the pandemic both created new issues and exacerbated existing ones for people, helping spur crime.

“There are more people in crisis due to the pandemic. There are more people that have mental health problems. And because of this, we are seeing this high spike in violence, especially gun violence in the inner cities,” said Generoso. “There are lessons to be learned from this. We have to have a better support system to deal with these problems, and to be able to mobilize our resources in a way that we can immediately address these issues as we see them come into being.”

Spell said he had heard from people in the city who expressed frustration about difficulty accessing personal protective equipment; hunger, as hours are cut and jobs are lost; and the lack of opportunities for young people.