Public Input Sessions Set For Police Chief Search In Hamden

From the City of Hamden: Mayor Curt Balzano Leng and the Hamden Police Chief Community Input & Transparency Committee have announced that three community meetings will occur in Hamden in the coming weeks. These meetings are designed to give Hamden residents several opportunities to offer public input on what they want to see in Hamden’s new Police Chief, including desired criteria necessary to ensure a diverse pool of talented candidates. In addition, the meetings will serve as an opportunity for the Committee to update the community on the goals and planned actions in the search process for a new Police Chief.

The meetings will occur as follows; June 19th at the Keefe Community Center Gymnasium (11 Pine Street), June 26th at Hamden Memorial Town Hall (2372 Whitney Avenue), and July 10th at West Woods Elementary School (250 W. Todd St.). All meetings will be held at 6:00pm on their respective dates, and are expected to conclude around 7:30pm.

The Committee members, a group of leaders and peers from Hamden’s community, have all been selected to serve on a completely volunteer basis at Mayor Leng’s request. Members include Pastor Keith King, Christian Tabernacle Church (Chair); Former Mayor Scott D. Jackson; Toni Foreman, Community resident; Dominique Baez, Community resident; Valerie Horsley, CEO of Action Together CT; Anthony Harper, Community resident; and Elana Roundtree, Community resident.

As was announced in early May, the Police Chief Community Input & Transparency Committee is tasked with four specific action items:

1. to hold a series of community dialogues and input sessions to gather meaningful input from residents regarding the important qualities and strengths needed in the new leader of the Hamden Police Department. Written input will also be requested from the community;
2. to provide recommendations, based on community input, for potential job description changes for the position of Police Chief;
3. to research best practices for key recruitment strategies to ensure that the Town proactively seeks a quality pool of diverse, experienced applicants, including but not limited to where to advertise and recruitment;
4. after the recruitment, the Mayor is asking this Committee to take the lead, working with the Personnel Department, to conduct full interviews of the applicants, so that a list of the top candidates recommended by the Committee can be forwarded to the Mayor.

The recommended candidates will then be interviewed by the Mayor and members of his Administration. The Mayor’s Office will continue to provide periodic updates to the Hamden community on the progress of the Committee’s assignments, and the status of the Police Chief application and nomination process.

For further information, please contact Deputy Chief of Staff, Patrick J. Donnelly, at 203-287-7009 or pdonnelly@hamden.com. Mayor Leng is available for public comment or interview if desired, and can be reached at 203-400-4408.