Hamden mayor plans use-of-force policy review

HAMDEN — Mayor Curt B. Leng committed to a review of the Hamden Police Department’s use of force policies in a release

Friday night, as he announced the community would join President Barack Obama’s “My Brothers’ Keeper” program.

Leng said the town, in keeping with the program’s

“Commit to Action” initative, would review its use of force policies, engage the community by including a diverse range of perspectives in the process, report findings and solicit feedback, and reform policy accordingly.

“The killing of George Floyd was a travesty and a stain of blood upon this nation, among countless others perpetrated against the black American by excessive, brutal and incomprehensible police actions. Hamden cannot and will never stand idle in the face of oppression. In our town, we can work to redefine public safety for the support and dignity of every person, and we will,” said Leng in a statement.

“We are a community of inclusiveness and understanding. We are a community of listening and learning. We have the ability to seize this moment, as a community and a nation, to not just include, understand, listen and learn — but to act, and to make change,” Leng said. “We will be the change we wish to see in this world, and we will be a community that leads in that effort for black Americans.”

Further information about Hamden’s progress in the “My Brother’s Keeper” program will be provided in updates on www.hamden.com, Leng said. Residents can find more information at https:// www.obama.org/mbka/.