New law takes on dual arrests

Will change how police deal with domestic disputes

NORWALK — Police, lawmakers and domestic violence advocates are hoping a new law that takes effect Jan. 1 will greatly reduce the number of “dual arrests” in domestic violence incidents.

Connecticut had been ranked worst nationwide in the arrest of both parties after incidents, advocates said, in effect revictimizing those who suffered abuse.

The new law requires police to identify a primary aggressor in a domestic-violence incident. Advocates and lawmakers said dual arrests are damaging for victims who call on law enforcement for help in an abusive situation but are instead arrested as a result.

That means victims might avoid calling police again in the future, and children who witness the violence might see the parent they identified as the victim being punished.

“It’s a huge waste of resources,” Pamela Davis, director of legal services at the Domestic Violence Crisis Center said of dual arrests. “It punishes the victim for calling law enforcement and seeking help even when the case is later nolle’d.”

Sometimes after a dual arrest, a victim is forced to pay attorney’s fees and seek child care before attending court hearings, Davis said. If a victim is considered an aggressor by police, the DVCC is unable to offer services.

Connecticut has the highest percentage of dual arrests in comparison to other states, according to Kevin Shippy, executive director of the Domestic Violence Crisis Center. Data compiled by Pro Publica supports his claim and suggests — nationally, dual arrests take place in 2 percent of all intimate partner violence arrests. In Connecticut, that number rises to 18 percent.

Most recent data from the Connecticut Coalition Against Domestic Violence shows 87 of 106 law enforcement agencies in the state have a dual arrest rate double or more than double the national average of 7.3 percent.

“The biggest problem with the current law is that it’s a mandatory arrest law so if the police go into the scene or home and they’re both pointing fingers at each other, the police officer … has to arrest both parties,” Davis said. In other words, if the officer suspects both parties are engaged in violent behavior, he or she must arrest both people.

Before 1986, Connecticut police often responded to domestic violence calls with the goal of keeping the peace rather than

Connecticut had been ranked worst nationwide in the arrest of both parties after incidents, advocates said, in effect revictimizing those who suffered abuse.

“We’re putting out feelers out there, we’re reaching out to other police departments, asking if they have similar cases, because we could be dealing with a serial killer here at this point.”

Bridgeport Police Chief Armando Perez

BRIDGEPORT — An Ohio man accused of fatally shooting a Bethel woman in Bridgeport earlier this month is expected to be arraigned in Bridgeport on Monday.

Meanwhile, police said they are investigating Brandon Roberts’ claim that he shot another woman in Washington Park in June 2017.

On Friday, detectives flew to Ohio to pick up the 26year-old Roberts, who is charged in Bridgeport with murder, felony murder, first-degree robbery, using a firearm in the commission of a felony and carrying a pistol without a permit.

Police said they expected to have him back in Bridgeport for arraignment in state Superior Court on Monday.

Roberts is accused of shooting 25-year-old Emily Todd in the back of the head near the boat ramp on Seaview Avenue. Todd, a therapist at a Danbury senior center, was found lying face down in the sand along the shore on the morning of Dec. 9.

Police said she was fully dressed and appeared to be wearing a long, blond wig, and that a spent bullet shell casing was found near her feet.

Police said Todd’s mother later told detectives that her daughter had met Roberts, who was staying with relatives at a Stratford hotel, through an online dating app.

After several dates, police said, Todd called off the relationship. But they said Roberts convinced Todd to meet him one more time, luring her to the area of the boat ramp.

After killing her, Roberts took Todd’s car, cellphone and credit cards, police said.

Video surveillance later showed Roberts driving Todd’s car into the drive through at the People’s United Bank in Trumbull where he used Todd’s debit card to withdraw $400 from Todd’s bank account, police said.

Police sources say Roberts confessed to killing Todd and also confessed to shooting a woman at Washington Park in June 2017. The sources said the woman’s injuries were not life-threatening. They provided no other details.

“We’re putting out feelers out there, we’re reaching out to other police departments, asking if they have similar cases, because we could be dealing with a serial killer here at this point,” Police Chief Armando Perez told News 12. “We need to put people like this in jail because we don’t know who we’re dealing with here. It could be, like I said, a serial killer, someone who does this, he has no conscience whatsoever.”