Embattled Hartford official resigns amid New Haven mayoral campaign

HARTFORD — Inspector General Liam Brennan announced Friday he will resign this month amid calls for him to be removed from the position as he runs for mayor of New Haven.

Brennan had previously said he would not resign in response to the Hartford police union’s statement that he was “destroying our reputation” through his work with the Civilian Police Review Board. He will now move to a part-time, interim role as the city looks for a successor and will focus on his New Haven mayoral campaign.

“I am thankful for Liam’s service to the Civilian Police Review Board and the City of Hartford,” Hartford Mayor Luke Bronin said in a statement. “Liam has served as the city’s first inspector general, a position that we created to support the CPRB as it carries out its mission of evaluating citizen complaints. Liam was selected after an extensive search and we will now begin the process of identifying a successor.”

The CPRB meets monthly and investigates complaints from community members related to specific Hartford police cases. As inspector general, Brennan investigated each complaint and presented his findings to the board. He was appointed by Bronin, City Council President Maly Rosado and CPRB Chairman Eric Crawford, and that trio will now search for a permanent replacement.

The police union had been unhappy with Brennan’s job as inspector general, calling him to resign in the past and again last week, just hours after his campaign announcement. In the statement, union president

James Rutkauski referred to two cases the CPRB considered during its Jan. 25 meeting, saying the board found allegations against police officers valid because of Brennan’s “omission of critical facts and biased explanation of law.”

Brennan responded by saying at the time, “I stand by the investigations in both of these cases.”

“Serving as inspector general has been an honor,” Brennan said in Friday’s statement announcing his resignation. “The system that Hartford has put together for civilian oversight of the police is truly a template for other cities and it has been a privilege to help stand up this office. I am thankful to Mayor Bronin, President Rosado and Chairman Crawford for their support and partnership during this process. I look forward to serving in an interim capacity as the city searches for a permanent replacement.”

Brennan will resign effective March 13, according to an announcement from the city. A timeline for selecting a replacement was not immediately clear.

Brennan