Bridgeport looks to ban knee and choke holds
BRIDGEPORT — A majority of the City Council proposed a resolution Wednesday calling for “reform and accountability” with the city’s Police Department following the death of George Floyd at the hands of police in Minneapolis.
“We stand united and in solidarity with the family of George Floyd and families of color who have endured the tragic loss of loved ones at the hands of police officers both unjustly and with little to no accountability,” said Council President Aidee Nieves standing outside City Hall.
“Some residents of Bridgeport have experienced similar incidents with our own police department and have called for reform and accountability,” she said.
Among the actions called for in the resolution, to be taken up at the June 15 meeting, are: a ban on police using knee and choke holds; all settlements for police use of excessive force and civil rights violations to be paid out of the Police
Department’s overtime budget; the function and structure of the Board of Police Commissioners will be reviewed; police officers will be provided both constituent engagement and de-escalation training; and all officers will be equipped with body cameras that must be turned on during all interactions with residents.
Councilwoman Eneida Martinez said police have to be held accountable for their actions.
“Residents are afraid right now,” said Councilman Alfredo Castillo. “They don’t know whether cops are good or bad.”
Mayor Joseph Ganim, who did not attend the council’s news conference, said he support’s the council’s idea.
“I have spoken to the council president and I wholeheartedly endorse and agree with the council’s resolution,” Ganim said later on Wednesday.
The mayor said he will support its implementation including the requirement that settlements come out of police overtime. The mayor said he recalls when police officers found to have violated someone’s civil rights were required to pay a portion of the settlement.
“Perhaps it time to return to that time,” he said.
On May 4, the City Council voted to approve a $342,500 settlement to city resident Carmelo Mendez
and another $20,000 settlement to his sister, Wanda Mendez, on allegations that 17 police officers either used excessive force or lied about not seeing it being used against the two people when police broke up a birthday party at their Colorado Avenue home in 2017.
Video from the scene showed officers pummeling and kicking Carmelo Mendez while he was handcuffed on the ground. Photographs later showed Mendez with a “S” stamped on the side of his head from the butt of an officer’s flashlight. The city’s Office of Internal Affairs Investigation found that 17 Bridgeport police officers and two civilian detention officers violated a laundry list of department regulations.
Nieves declined to comment but Councilwoman Maria Pereira later said the Mendez case was one of the reasons she insisted that the council resolution include the requirement that settlements come out of police overtime.
“You want them to be accountable, then take the settlements out of their overtime,” she said. “(The Mendez) case was disgraceful. It happened almost three years ago and only one officer had been disciplined. This is the reason residents lose faith with the police and local government.”
Eleven officers are facing disciplinary action for the Colorado Avenue incident; the city’s police commission resumed hearings into the case in February.