The center will provide short-tcerm interventions for people who are experiencing a crisis and need stabilization, serving as an alternative destination to hospitalizations or jail. The center will be staffed 24/7, 365 days per year, with a multidisciplinary team of psychiatrists, nurses, licensed clinicians and peers with lived experience, according to outgoing Department of Community Resilience Director Carlos Sosa-Lombardo. The center can accommodate up to ten patients at a time, Celeste Cremin-Endes, the Connecticut State Department of Mental Health and Addiction Services’ Chief of State-Operated Services told the News. 

The city has not yet announced the center, and Lenny Speiller, the city’s communications director, declined to give further details on the center’s opening until they are finalized.

Continuum of Care’s Vice President of Acute and Forensic Services John Labieniec, who will be spearheading the project with Program Director of Emergency Response Services Wanda Jofre, told the News that the center will be located in the Beaver Hills neighborhood and that the team hopes construction will be done by early April so that the center can begin operations later that month.

“Our community is struggling with a homeless crisis and with the rise in mental health needs during an emergency we need more alternatives other than ‘Yale or jail,’” Labieniec wrote to the News, referring to the Yale New Haven Hospital.

Labieniec said that the project began when Continuum received a grant to explore 24-hour community-based “therapeutic” stabilization centers around the country as alternative treatment centers to emergency rooms for individuals struggling with behavioral health issues.

Labieniec and Jofre, both licensed social workers, received grants from the state and New Haven, and are partnering with the Connecticut Mental Health Center, the City’s Department of Community Resilience, the Elm City COMPASS mobile crisis team and New Haven police. Labieniec specifically thanked Sosa-Lombardo for his involvement in the project, calling him “instrumental” in making the vision for a crisis stabilization center a reality.

Cremin-Endes explained that Continuum’s state contract was awarded through a Request for Proposal — or RFP — process, where the state solicited bids from organizations looking to take on a project similar to the REST Center. The highest-scoring bid is then given the opportunity to negotiate a contract.

She said that the state’s grant is intended to cover the cost of the center’s operations, while the grant from the city funds the center’s physical construction.

Jorge X. Camacho LAW ’10, a criminal justice and policing law scholar, noted the significance of the REST Center’s 24/7 care model. He said that despite hotlines like 2-1-1 — which connects callers to New Haven’s Coordinated Access Network — being available 24/7, the services to which operators can connect patients are often unavailable. 

Labieniec said that the REST center will follow a “living room model” — providing services in a non-institutional, home-like environment. 

According to Sosa-Lombardo, the center will accommodate individuals who may arrive by ambulance, police transport or from a crisis team like COMPASS. The crisis team, also founded as a partnership between the city and Continuum of Care, offloads specific cases, like mental health crises, from the city’s emergency service departments.

“The model is meant to partner with police and mobile crisis [teams] and serve as that alternative,” wrote Labieniec. “The idea is no one is turned away.”

Camacho said that the community-centered approach to intervention brings the sophisticated treatment that would normally only be available in acute care settings to the location where patients live, making the treatment process, for mental health issues or drug abuse, less isolating than typical forms of intervention.

He also emphasized a trend of increasing enthusiasm by police officials to collaborate with these types of crisis intervention methods.

“[Intervention] does not pose an existential threat to police officers, or policing in itself, but it can be seen as a really useful and beneficial supplement to the efforts of police officers to effectuate public safety,” Camacho said.

Crisis Stabilization Units — or CSUs — have risen in popularity throughout the country. The Wellmore Behavioral Health non-profit treatment provider in Waterbury currently operates a 24-hour Urgent Crisis Center for children. Three other pediatric CSUs currently operate in the state — at Yale New Haven Children’s Hospital, the Village for Families and Children in Hartford and the Child and Family Agency of Southeastern Connecticut in New London — but each of the centers has placed a limit on daily capacity. When the REST Center begins operations, it will be the only such service for adults in Connecticut.

Continuum of Care was founded in 1966.

The post New 24-hour crisis intervention center planned for New Haven appeared first on Yale Daily News.

Pan, a former Massachusetts Institute of Technology researcher, will face 35 years in prison as part of his plea agreement. Pan is due back in court on April 25 for his disposition hearing, which will include his sentencing, according to court records.

Pan’s plea, entered in Superior Court in New Haven, concludes a case that made national headlines for the murder of a Yale student and the three-month-long manhunt that followed.

“I can’t say this brings the family justice. I hope it does,” New Haven Police Chief Karl Jacobson told the News Thursday evening. “I think a 35-year sentence is a large sentence … I hope this brings the family justice.”

Molly Arabolos, Pan’s attorney, did not immediately respond to a request for comment. New Haven State’s Attorney John P. Doyle Jr. also did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

Jiang, a 26-year-old student at the School of the Environment, was shot and killed on Feb. 6, 2021, in New Haven’s East Rock neighborhood. The shooting occurred just a week after he proposed to his fiance, Zion Perry GRD ’26, whom Pan knew at MIT. Police identified Pan as a person of interest on Feb. 10, but Pan evaded police until May 13, 2021, when he was detained by United States Marshalls in Montgomery, Alabama.

Pan had been held in custody for the past three years, as judges granted Pan and his attorneys multiple extensions to review evidence. In March 2022, Pan’s lawyer claimed that Pan was having difficulty reading through documents related to the case because he had limited access to the prison library. 

In September 2022, Pan’s attorney requested State Superior Court Judge Jon Alander LAW ’78 to order a “competency exam.” Results from the exam that Alander granted deemed Pan fit for trial in early November 2022.

Pan first faced evidence in court in December 2022 over two days of probable cause hearings. Several witnesses who testified at the hearings described how they saw Pan flee the scene in a SUV and forensic scientists testified that they had found evidence inside the SUV, further linking Pan to the crime scene.

“I hope to see justice soon,” Jiang’s mother Linda Liu told the News after the first probable cause hearing on Dec. 6, 2022. “Not for money or fame but for the truth.”

On Dec. 8, 2022, Alander ruled that there was probable cause linking Pan to Jiang’s murder. Two days after Alander’s ruling, Pan pleaded not guilty to the charges brought against him.

In April 2023, Arabolos — a public defender — was assigned to Pan’s case, replacing his private criminal defense attorneys. Arabolos represented Pan at his hearing on Thursday, during which Pan pleaded guilty. 

Jacobson attributed the guilty plea to overwhelming evidence from the prosecutors that linked Pan to the murder.

“The justice system takes time for a reason,” Jacobson said. “I think the fact that he gave a plea shows you that we had an overwhelming case with lots of evidence. I’m proud of the work of the state’s attorney’s office who prepared for trial and gave them no other choice but to plead out.”

Pan’s sentencing hearing will take place on April 25 at the New Haven Courthouse at 235 Church St.

Nathaniel Rosenberg and Sophie Sonnenfeld contributed reporting.

The post Qinxuan Pan pleads guilty to murder of Kevin Jiang ENV ’22 appeared first on Yale Daily News.

That is according to the monthly Board of Police Commissioners meeting, which was held Tuesday, Feb. 13, to discuss officer shortages, crime rates and civilian complaints against the officers. New Haven Police Chief Karl Jacobson addressed the board’s concerns with optimism as he announced various measures aimed at molding a robust police department for years to come.

Assistant Chief of Police Manmeet Bhagtana announced the approval of a list of 40 conditional job offers that the department has delivered to prospective officers, which would fill over half of the department’s open spots.

At the meeting, Jacobson lamented staffing losses initiated by resignations, retirements and transfers to departments in nearby areas. The NHPD currently has 73 open positions after three recent resignations where officers transitioned to surrounding cities with higher pay and enhanced benefits. 

“We have to get our salaries up,” Jacobson said. “These losses are very disappointing.”

To address vacancies, Sergeant Paul Finch has spearheaded a widespread recruitment effort for local high school and college students interested in law enforcement careers.

These staffing shortages have coincided with a stagnation in crime rates across the city. 

“There were five homicides and ten shootings by this time last year,” Jacobson said. “This year, there have only been two homicides and two shootings.”

Jacobson attributed these strides to work by the City Youth Department and coordinated action on violent crime. 

There was a five percent uptick in auto theft from last year, with Kia and Hyundai models being at exceptional risk for burglary in the city, according to Jacobson. He added that juveniles who perpetrate these crimes have been given special attention through probation and coordination with the City Youth Department.

Lieutenant Jessie Agosto also announced 19 complaints issued against police officers — mostly an assortment of miscellaneous offenses with five neglect of duties. 

According to Agosto, a woman filed a grievance against a sergeant for excessive force during detainment. The woman allegedly reported that the sergeant pushed her sister while apprehending her. The NHPD deemed the force as justified according to their internal affairs procedure, but Commissioner Tracey Meares questioned the department’s policies.

Meares, a professor at Yale Law School, spoke about the necessity of reevaluating codes and procedures implemented by former police chiefs. Those standards, she said, may not be up to date with current standards of good policing. 

“The use of force may be consistent with policy, but consistence with policy could also be avoidable,” said Meares. 

The Board of Police Commissioners concluded their meeting with nominations and elections for the chair and vice chair positions. Evelise Ribeiro was unanimously reelected chairwoman.

Michael Lawlor, a member of the Board of Police Commissioners and criminal justice professor at the University of New Haven, nominated Donald Walker to return as vice chair of the board. 

“He has been a mentor in many respects and he’s just a phenomenal leader in our community,” Lawlor said about Walker. “We are lucky to have him in the process once again.”

Walker was also unanimously elected vice chairman. 

The Board of Police Commissioners meeting was held at 6 p.m. on Zoom.

The post NHPD announces 40 conditional job offers to address staffing shortages  appeared first on Yale Daily News.

Suffering from hip pain and spinal injuries, Becerra says he reported his workplace injuries to MDF Painting. Instead of providing worker’s compensation, MDF fired him and tried to send him on a flight back to Guatemala days later. 

Since his arrival in New Haven, Becerra has been living at 200 Peck St. in Fair Haven, at a house owned by his boss, Mark DeFrancesco, along with at least 19 other migrant workers who had come from Guatemala on H-2B visas sponsored by MDF. While still living at 200 Peck St. Becerra filed a workers’ compensation complaint on Oct. 23; two weeks later, his boss and landlord, DeFrancesco, served him and another tenant-employee, Josue Mauricio Araña, an eviction notice. 

Becerra and MDF have been embroiled in two legal disputes: Becerra’s worker’s compensation case and DeFrancesco’s eviction claim. On Monday, the Connecticut Superior Court denied the eviction, but left the door open for DeFrancesco to evict Becerra and Araña through a different method. Becerra is awaiting his worker’s compensation hearing next week. 

The News spoke to two experts who said that obstacles to reporting make it difficult to quantify workers’ compensation abuse, but cases like Becerra’s are part of a wider pattern of thin protections for migrant workers.

Tyrese Ford, Becerra’s housing court lawyer, said he hopes Becerra’s case raises awareness about the ways migrant workers in New Haven remain vulnerable. 

“Hypothetically, if Edgar had never reached out to us and let us know the situation, would the public have known about their situation?” Ford said. “How would we have known that was going on around the corner on 200 Peck St.?” 

Becerra suffered multiple injuries, allegedly slept on the street after eviction 

MDF’s website advertises a close-knit team, urging workers to join a company that’s like an “extended family.” But Becerra’s experience with MDF, as he described it, paints a different picture. 

Becerra arrived in New Haven in July 2023 on a temporary work visa sponsored by MDF, slated to expire on Nov. 30. When Becerra arrived at 200 Peck St., he discovered at least 19 other MDF workers from Guatemala already living in the house, according to documents filed by his attorney. According to Becerra, no bed was available and he slept on the floor of a third-floor bedroom. DeFrancesco denied this at trial, saying he provided the tenants with mattresses. MDF paid Becerra almost $17 an hour; DeFrancesco set rent at $75 a week. 

In August, Becerra fell from a 32-foot ladder while painting for MDF and suffered leg and hip injuries, according to documents submitted by his attorney. Becerra said he reported the injury to MDF, who required him to continue working. 

MDF and Mark DeFrancesco’s attorney did not respond to multiple requests to comment. 

In September, Becerra said he fell head-first from a second-floor window while working; MDF again allegedly ignored his injury and told him to return to work. 

At the trial, Becerra claimed that MDF did not provide safety equipment, such as helmets, gloves or cable, to its workers, according to the New Haven Independent. 

The documents introduced by Becerra’s attorney claim that on Sep. 26, Becerra, “unable to manage the pain,” was admitted to Yale New Haven Hospital and diagnosed with a lower spine and hip injury. The next day, MDF allegedly told Becerra they would fire him and send him back to Guatemala if he did not return to work. When he did not return to work, Becerra was fired.

On Sep. 30, Lisa Hollingsworth, DeFrancesco’s sister and a principle of MDF, texted Becerra telling him DeFrancesco had bought plane tickets for him back to Guatemala the following day. 

“Great news. Mark approved to pay for your flight,” the text read, instructing Becerra to “pack and have your things ready,” according to the court decision. The next day, Hollingsworth texted Becerra the flight confirmation code. Becerra did not board the flight. 

Becerra alleges that in October, MDF changed the lock code to the Peck Street residence. Unable to access the house, Becerra and Araña slept outside for two days before contacting New Haven Police, who ordered MDF to allow Becerra and Araña back into the house. During the trial, DeFrancesco claimed that the lockout was purely accidental, according to the New Haven Independent. 

Becerra filed a report of injury with the Connecticut Workers’ Compensation Commission on Oct. 23; his workers’ compensation case is still pending. Around this time, Becerra was hospitalized for over a week for work-related injuries. 

On Nov. 6, MDF served Becerra and Araña an eviction notice, ordering the men to leave 200 Peck St. within the week. In late November, DeFrancesco and his attorney Joshua Brown filed an eviction complaint against Becerra and Araña in court, officially beginning the legal dispute that culminated in Monday’s decision. 

Housing court denies eviction, for now 

The eviction dispute was heard first on Jan. 11 and again on Jan. 16. DeFrancesco claimed that both tenants were bound by weekly, oral lease agreements. 

On Monday, Judge Walter Spader issued a decision siding with Becerra and Araña, ruling that MDF had not proved the existence and terms of a week-to-week oral lease.

However, the decision noted that Becerra and Araña have not paid DeFrancesco for the continued residence in the house, leaving open the opportunity for MDF to file another eviction claim under “right or privilege terminated.” 

A footnote in the decision stated that there was nothing to suggest that MDF’s eviction case was retaliation against Becerra’s workers’ compensation claim — a major part of Becerra’s defense. 

“Did this decision inch us toward justice? I would say yes,” said Ford, Becerra’s attorney at New Haven Legal Assistance Association. “Did it do enough? No. But it did provide us with more time and opportunity to seek justice.” 

Becerra’s case example of limited migrant protections

According to Glenn Formica, the attorney representing Becerra in his workers’ compensation case, workers’ compensation can be one of the most expensive components of a construction job, and construction companies often use undocumented migrant workers to skirt those costs. Formica said he has encountered many undocumented workers who fear deportation if they file a workers’ compensation complaint against their employer. 

While Becerra came to New Haven on an H-2B visa, Formica estimated that around two-thirds of the workers he represents are undocumented. Becerra stands out from other cases of migrant workers injured on the job because he has gone public with his case and is pursuing legal compensation, Formica said. 

Professor Sheila Hayre, who teaches immigration law and serves as the faculty advisor for the Human Trafficking Prevention Project at Quinnipiac University School of Law, said that the protections for undocumented workers compared to those with temporary working status are like “night and day.” 

However, she emphasized that workers with legal working permission still face hurdles in reporting workplace injuries, and oftentimes, return back to their own countries to receive care before receiving compensation. 

“You can imagine yourself [suffering a workplace injury on a temporary working visa], and just feeling like I just want to go home,” Hayre said. “Situations like that, where you feel like the employer has provided housing and a job and everything else, the logistics of ‘how do I even survive while I’m fighting this case?’ I think it is a really huge issue.”

Hayre noted that difficulty in switching employers, who sponsor the visa, can prevent migrant workers from leaving exploitative or problematic employers. She also said that employers can “blacklist” workers from future work visas in the U.S., enabling employers to hang this potential ban over workers’ heads. As a result, many workers “put up” with unfair working conditions because they feel like they lack other options, according to Hayre. 

A lack of awareness among migrant workers of their labor rights additionally reduces reporting and obscures the extent of migrants working in unsafe conditions on a national scale, according to Hayre.

“What I’m proud of Edgar about as a client, is that he’s standing up and saying, ‘hey, I’m every bit as human as the next guy. I’m injured, and I’m taking advantage of it,’” Formica said. “I think in a general sense, Edgar is just trying to stand up and assert his own humanity. By example, he’s trying to assert the humanity of all foreign workers.” 

Becerra’s workers compensation case hearing is scheduled for next Thursday, Feb. 15. 

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The smoke shop, which opened in 2022 at 986 Chapel St. and is not licensed to sell cannabis products, failed multiple undercover visits by state officials. On Jan. 9, Connecticut Attorney General William Tong brought a lawsuit against Anesthesia, three other cannabis retailers and three wholesalers for failing to comply with Connecticut’s Unfair Trade Practices Act. 

“On multiple unannounced visits, investigators from the Department of Consumer Protection and Office of the Attorney General observed thousands of high-THC products, including those more potent than any product available in the regulated cannabis market,” a state press release read. “Products included potent edibles, as well as marijuana flower.” 

In addition to illegal distribution, the lawsuit alleges that Anesthesia sold products that lacked labels and state-mandated warnings. 

Bryan T. Cafferelli, the commissioner of the Department of Consumer Protection, explained the dangers that come with unlabeled products and the harm it can cause to underage buyers. 

“Many of these products are packaged in a way that is misleading – signaling to consumers that the product inside is safe when it is not – and, most shamefully, are often sold to people who are underage and may not realize the effects of what they are consuming,” Caffereli wrote in a press release. “Adults who choose to consume cannabis should shop in the regulated market and keep their products out of sight and out of reach from children and teens.” 

Anesthesia Smoke Shop declined to comment on the allegations in the lawsuit. 

Three underage patrons told the News they were able to buy cannabis and other THC products from the shop dating back to transactions from 2022. The legal age to buy cannabis products in Connecticut is 21.

The New Haven Police Department and the New Haven office of the Drug Enforcement Administration did not respond to requests to comment. 

“I would say it was easier to buy from them freshman year. They got a little more strict with IDs at the beginning of sophomore year,” a Yale College sophomore — who requested anonymity because of their age — told the News.  “I don’t know if it was because I was a regular_, but they stopped checking my ID after the first few times. They definitely sold to minors. Freshman year they only asked for my age and didn’t cross-check with my ID.” 

An anonymous first-year student said that there were no cannabis products visible when they first entered the store, but that when they asked a worker for edibles, they were able to purchase without issue.

According to patrons, all cannabis products were stored behind the counter or in the back areas of the smoke shop. 

“I asked the person at the desk if they sold edibles and she went behind the counter and got stuff. It was 10 gummies of 10 milligrams [THC],” the anonymous first year said. “I paid in cash. They were stronger. They were definitely stronger than other 10 milligram edibles I had had before and they hit faster as well.”

Another anonymous sophomore described Anesthesia’s lax vetting measures, which allowed them to buy cannabis despite them being 19, two years below the legal age requirement.  

According to the source, the smoke shop also had patrons buy cannabis with cash instead of debit or credit cards.

“I’ve never been asked for my ID. The only questioning I’ve experienced is if I’m paying with cash,” the anonymous sophomore said. “I believe once you’ve made it in the door, you have access to buy whatever you want no matter the age.”

Violations of the Connecticut Unfair Trade Practices Act can result in fines of up to $5,000 per infraction. 

In 2024, Connecticut secured judgments against four additional Connecticut cannabis retailers and imposed fines totaling $40,000 for alleged violations of the Connecticut Unfair Trade Practices Act, stemming from the sale of delta-8 THC products. 

“We have multiple active investigations into additional retailers and wholesalers, and we will keep the heat on so long as these dangerous, illegal products are sold,” Tong said in the press release. 

The Connecticut Unfair Trade Practices Act was adopted in 1973. 

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Two of three arbitration officers on the Connecticut State Board of Mediation and Arbitration voted to overturn the city’s termination of Diaz, who was fired in June of last year for his role in paralyzing Randy Cox, which sparked protests in New Haven. The panel ruled that Diaz was not responsible for Cox’s injuries and should return to his post with full pay after a 15-day unpaid suspension.

Cox, a 36-year-old Black man, was paralyzed in police custody after he was arrested by NHPD officers on June 19, 2022. While driving Cox to the Westchester Avenue substation, Diaz, who was speeding, stopped abruptly to avoid a crash and Cox slammed against the back of the police vehicle, which did not have seatbelts.

Diaz did not wait for an ambulance and instead took Cox to NHPD headquarters, where he was dragged out of the van and into a holding cell before receiving medical attention. Cox repeatedly told the five officers involved he could not move but was dismissed according to footage released by the NHPD. 

On Sept. 27, 2022, Cox filed a lawsuit for $100 million in damages against the city of New Haven and the five officers involved: Diaz, Betsy Segui, Ronald Pressley, Jocelyn Lavendier and Luis Rivera. The city settled the case for $45 million in June 2023, almost a year after Cox’s arrest, marking the largest settlement in a police misconduct case in United States history. 

After a criminal investigation conducted by Connecticut State Police, Diaz was charged in November 2022 with cruelty to persons and reckless endangerment in the second degree. Both criminal charges are still pending. The New Haven Board of Police Commissioners voted to fire Diaz on June 28, 2023, on the basis of violating several general orders. Diaz also has a pending decertification request at Connecticut’s State Police Officer Standards and Training Council.

After deciding that Diaz “did not commit all of the violations with which he was charged,” two of three members of the State Arbitration Panel ruled that the decision to terminate Diaz’s office lacked just cause.

The ruling claims that there is no evidence to prove Diaz’s actions resulted directly in Cox’s injuries and says that he treated Cox with respect. It also says that Diaz’s use of his phone while driving was a minor violation of a general order.

New Haven Mayor Justin Elicker and New Haven Police Chief Karl Jacobson released a joint statement shortly after the ruling was publicized expressing their disagreement with the panel’s decision.

“​​We are incredibly disappointed and strongly disagree with the ruling by the Connecticut State Board of Mediation and Arbitration,” Elicker and Jacobson wrote. “We strongly believe the decision to terminate Officer Diaz was the right one, and the city will challenge the ruling by submitting a motion to vacate to the Connecticut Superior Court.”

Despite the ruling of the Arbitration Board for Diaz to return to the NHPD following a 15-day unpaid suspension, Diaz will not be reinstated as an officer due to his forthcoming criminal trial and motion to vacate. 

The News could not reach Diaz for comment and his lawyer, Jeffery Ment, did not respond to a request for comment.

“In the immediate term, the decision of this arbitration board clears a hurdle for the officer who’s seeking to be reinstated as a police officer and escape accountability for what happened to Randy Cox,” said Jorge Camacho, who is the policing, law and policy director of the Justice Collaboratory at Yale Law School. 

Camacho added that this arbitration ruling may have implications for Diaz’s criminal trial.

“The findings of the arbitration board are pursuant to a standard of evidence and burden of proof that is lower than what a criminal prosecution would need to result in a conviction,” Camacho said. “You would have to be even more certain of the conduct that this officer did to sustain a criminal conviction than to sustain his firing from the New Haven police department.”

Florencio Cotto, president of the New Haven Police Union, did not respond to the News’ request for comment.

The Connecticut State Board of Mediation and Arbitration is located at 38 Wolcott Hill Rd. in Wethersfield.

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On Friday, Jan. 12, the YPD promoted five officers at a ceremony held in the Whitney Humanities Center Auditorium. Dell was promoted to Assistant Chief after previously serving as the Public Information Officer at the New Haven Police Department. Dell told the News that YPD Chief Anthony Campbell ’95, former NHPD Chief and her former classmate in Berkeley College, approached her about the role.

“We share a belief in servant leadership and have a shared vision for moving the department forward,” Dell wrote in an email to the News. “Joining the YPD allows me to work alongside Chief Campbell, contribute to the institution I hold dear as an alumna, and make a positive impact on the Yale community.”

The position opened after former Assistant Chief Steve Woznyk retired in 2022 after 17 years in the role. The YPD selected Dell from several external candidates, including applicants from NHPD. 

At the same ceremony, John Healy was sworn in as captain. Healy retired from NHPD in June 2023. 

Both Dell and Healy were interviewed by a panel consisting of University faculty, law enforcement officials and community members, according to Campbell. Dell was chosen for the position in November 2023. 

“As the Assistant Chief of the Yale Police Department, my primary focus is to reclaim the image of policing as a noble profession,” Dell wrote in an email to the News. “I am committed to advancing women in law enforcement through the implementation of the 30X30 initiative. This initiative aims to increase the representation of women in law enforcement agencies to 30 percent by the year 2030.”

Dell served in a variety of roles, including leading the Internal Affairs Unit, Captain and Public Information Officer during her 15 years at the NHPD. Campbell described what he sees as the imbalance of opportunities for women in executive leadership and stated his commitment to ensuring the representation of women in policing.

Currently, 16 percent of YPD’s force is women, Campbell told the New Haven Independent. Nationwide only 12 percent of police officers are women.

“From the time I was sworn in … one of my goals is to make sure that there are females represented on the highest level of leadership in this organization,” Campbell said. 

Campbell highlighted Dell’s experience in policy writing, policy development, crash reconstruction, internal affairs and numerous leadership positions in New Haven. Campbell also noted that both Dell and Healy received executive training from the Police Executive Research Forum and the FBI National Academy.

In his time at the NHPD, Healy served as captain and deputy commander for the SWAT team — Special Weapons And Tactics. The YPD Captain position was vacated after former Captain William Kraszewsky retired in February after 34 years on the force. Healy told the News that he decided to join the YPD because it offered him the opportunity to stay in New Haven and continue working in policing. 

“Having already developed a deep understanding of the geographical area and the communities within New Haven during my time with the New Haven Police Department, joining the Yale Police Department felt like a seamless transition,” Healy wrote in an email to the News. “I am excited about the chance to contribute to the safety and security of Yale and its surrounding areas, and I believe my experience and knowledge will be valuable assets in this role.”

Campbell highlighted Healy’s emergency service and SWAT experience as well as his time leading investigative service units. 

Three other officers were sworn in at the ceremony. Gregg Curran and Raymund Dejesus were promoted to detectives after retirements in 2023 left two vacant positions. Gabrielle Kado was elevated to sergeant after a sergeant resigned in November.

The Yale Police Department was founded in 1894.

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The demonstration — organized by American Muslims for Palestine’s Connecticut chapter, Students for Justice in Palestine at the University of Connecticut, We Will Return Palestine and Yalies4Palestine — protested the United Nations’ response to the Israel-Hamas war, per an Instagram post announcing the rally. 

In a Dec. 10 joint Instagram post by Yalies4Palestine and AMP CT, the organizers apologized for the incident, which they condemned as antisemitic, and said the individual who placed the flag atop the menorah was not affiliated with any of the organizing groups. On Dec. 11, Mayor Justin Elicker, Sen. Richard Blumenthal, Rep. Rosa DeLauro and other community leaders convened in a press conference on New Haven Green to condemn the action. 

“We in New Haven condemn hate and condemn antisemitism … [and] have gathered … many other times to condemn other forms of hate in our city,” Elicker said on Monday. “We have people that are very passionate on many different sides of issues, and we embrace people’s ability to call out what they care for and to demonstrate [it]. We can hold … strong beliefs, but in New Haven, we always treat each other with mutual respect.”

On Saturday, around 300 protesters marched through the Green, along Chapel Street, York Street, and then through Elm Street back to the Green, according to the New Haven Independent. Through the route, some chanted, “From the river to the sea, Palestine will be free,” and “There is only one solution: Intifada revolution.” Some protesters carried posters calling Rep. DeLauro to push for a ceasefire, among other posters. 

During the protest, an unidentified masked individual climbed the menorah and stuck a Palestinian flag between the branches of the menorah. Below, several people surrounding the individual called for the person to “get down” and said “that looks bad for us,” according to a video from Forbes. According to the New Haven Independent, other protesters took down the flag from the menorah immediately after it was put up. 

“These actions do not align with our goals of promoting respective dialogue and peaceful advocacy,” organizers wrote in their statement. “Moving forward, we will take further precautions to uphold our commitment to foster an inclusive and respectful environment for all participants.” They added that there is “no room for antisemitism” in their ““movement for Palestine.”

On Oct. 7, Hamas attacked Israel, killing at least 1,200 people and taking 240 people as hostages, according to Israel’s Foreign Ministry. Israel responded with bombardment of Gaza, killing more than 17,700 Palestinians as of Monday evening, according to estimates from the Gaza Ministry of Health as reported by the Associated Press.

Following the attack, reports of antisemitism, anti-Arab and anti-Muslim hate have surged in the U.S. At Yale, more than 1,500 faculty, alumni and parents signed a Nov. 20 letter urging the administration to combat antisemitism. Following the shooting of three Palestinian college students by a man in Vermont, Palestinian and Muslim students at the University, too, have voiced concerns about their safety. 

In response to the incident, Jewish Voices for Peace New Haven released a statement voicing support for organizers and thanking them for condemning the act. The organization called to “not equate anti-Zionism with antisemitism” and “for an immediate and permanent ceasefire” in Gaza.

Jewish Federation of Greater New Haven CEO Gayle Slossberg, State Sen. Martin Looney, Rabbi Gershon Borenstein, whose congregation installed the menorah, Yale Director of Muslim Life ​​Omer Bajwa and Yale Interim University Chaplain Maytal Saltiel also attended the press conference on Green to denounce the “desecration” of the menorah. 

Slossberg stressed that Saturday’s action “is not one isolated incident that happened without any history” but an antisemitic act that “evokes thousands of years of trauma and pain for the Jewish community.” 

​“One act of positivity will far outpace … what one negative act can do,” Borenstein said, urging press conference attendees to light their menorahs for Hanukkah. 

According to Elicker and Blumenthal, some individuals threw eggs at participants of the Saturday protest, which they both also condemned as “hate violence.” 

Blumenthal and other public officials called to condemn and speak up against hate speech and violence “no matter who the targets are.”

“It may look like a prank. It may look like a joke,” Blumenthal said of the incident. “But it couldn’t be more serious because it is the mockery and desecration of a profoundly important religious symbol.”

DeLauro called Hamas’ Oct. 7 attack “barbaric” and asked attendees “to be conscious

of what is happening to civilians in Gaza.” 

The action of the individual who hung the Palestinian flag from the menorah, DeLauro said, divided people from “com[ing] together [to] understand the sensiti[tivity] and complexity of what is happening” in Israel and Gaza. 

“At this point, since there’s no vandalism or theft, we’re just treating it as a potential hate crime, although we do categorize it as a hateful incident,” NHPD Assistant Chief David Zannelli said. According to him, the action will be categorized as a hate crime if police find an intent to incite violence. 

Zannelli said that the NHPD could not confirm the identity of the individual who placed a flag on the menorah and whether they are a Yale student, but they are continuing an investigation.

Yale released a statement on Dec. 10 condemning the incident.

The statement also said that the University had no information as to whether the perpetrator was a Yale community member or not and that the University may be conducting its own investigation.

“Yale condemns in the strongest possible terms the desecration of a menorah on the New Haven Green during the religious holiday of Chanukah,” the University’s statement reads. “The placement of a Palestinian flag on the menorah conveys a deeply antisemitic message to Jewish residents of New Haven, including members of the Yale community. Yale’s regulations reach conduct occurring on or off campus that imperils the integrity and values of the University community, and if such conduct is committed by a member of the Yale community, we take action.”

Toward the end of the Monday press conference, an attendee called Israel’s military actions in Gaza “a genocide” and asked Blumenthal when he would call for a ceasefire in Gaza. This prompted heated arguments between other attendees of the press conference and caused an abrupt end to the press conference. Blumenthal approached the attendee who initially raised the question — whom the News was unable to identify — following the press conference. 

Last month, local organizers proposed a city resolution calling for a ceasefire in Israel and in Gaza. 

Hanukkah, the Jewish Festival of Lights, ends on Friday, Dec. 15.

Hannah Kotler contributed reporting.

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According to NHPD Assistant Chief David Zannelli, the department has a total of 82 sworn positions that are currently vacant, including 47 in patrol. This limits the NHPD’s ability to respond to calls for service, he said. Recruits will undergo training and join the force in May upon successful completion of the program. 

“Although we’re still a little short, this does bring our numbers up to a better place,” New Haven Police Chief Karl Jacobson said at the swearing-in ceremony. “I thank you for having the courage to go through this process and sit here and be ready to join the New Haven Police Department.”

Jacobson emphasized that NHPD is committed to hiring a diverse group of police officers. This class of recruits includes six women. Sixteen of the 19 recruits are women and/or racial minorities, Jacobson said.

New Haven Mayor Justin Elicker thanked recruits, as well as their families, for making “sacrifice on [their] part” and supporting the future officers. He called on the recruits to “always make good decisions,” on and off the job. 

Vacancies in city police limit service

Vacancies in the police department have made it difficult to respond to all calls for service, especially with 13,000 more calls for service this year compared to 2022 numbers, according to Zannelli. 

“We need to respond to the things that are potentially life and death first, so being low staff sometimes aggravates the community because we can’t respond as quickly as we’d like to,” Zannelli said. “I’d like to have 10 or 12 [School Resource Officers], we only have five. I’d like to have a walking beat in every district. We just can’t do that.”

There are 394 full-time sworn police officer positions in the city’s budget. Currently, 344 positions of those positions are filled — including the latest class of 18 new recruits from last week — which translates into 87 percent of positions being filled.

Zannelli attributed this shortage to the negative portrayal of police in social media in America in recent years as well as low work compensation and benefits New Haven police officers receive. 

Zannelli argued there was a generational change in the perspective on the profession, as he said people focus on instances of police brutality such as the murder of George Floyd by Minneapolis police in 2020. 

“The new generation is just not interested in law enforcement because of the negative media spin and some of the unrealistic expectations put on police officers nowadays,” Zannelli told the News. “That’s one of the pieces that people often cite to us … it’s a thankless job.”

In addition to negative sentiment surrounding policing in America, salary and working conditions contribute to vacancies in the department.

In New Haven, a starting police officer earns $50,745 annually. In comparison, the starting salary of an officer in Bridgeport is $69,118 and is $78,654 in Waterbury.

Zannelli added that younger workers seek jobs with more flexibility and work-life balance and are not as willing to work the 60 to 70 hours a week that a job in law enforcement requires. The high number of vacancies, he said, only increases the pressure and time commitment for each officer.

“No workplace is perfect,” Nikki Curry, a New Haven police officer who worked in the force for 15 years, told the News. “[But] it’s a fulfilling job … I enjoy coming to work every day, our department is great.”

Curry said she talks to New Haven residents, on and off duty, and tries to get more people to join the NHPD, although she acknowledged that “the climate for policing has changed.” 

There is a similar number of vacancies in the police department as in other city departments, according to data provided by the mayor’s office. 

Excluding vacancies in public schools, there are approximately 230 vacancies out of 1,400 full-time positions in city government. This reflects an 16 percent vacancy rate compared to 13 percent at the NHPD, after the addition of the 19 new recruits. 

NHPD pursuing recruitment strategies

To address the shortage, the New Haven police department has used different methods in its recruitment efforts. 

Jacobson said he has put emphasis on recruitment programs, especially youth programming, since he was sworn into office in July 2022. According to him, the NHPD hosts a mentorship program that works with approximately 425 kids per week in athletic programs in hopes of positively shaping their perception of the NHPD. 

“If you take kids from especially a city neighborhood, what they might be getting at home is [that] police are no good, the police are bad,” Jacobson told the News. “So it’s been a thing of mine to start young and get the kids to understand that we’re people, too. That we’re good people, and then, hopefully, they change their mind to want to become cops at some point.”

In addition, the NHPD has invested in other recruitment efforts such as the Clergy Academy, which involved religious leaders of various faiths in the recruitment process, the Residence Academy and the Junior Cadet Program, a training program geared toward potential recruits who are between 13 and 20-years-old. The department, Jacobson said, also continues to recruit veterans and college graduates. 

Jacobson said that the NHPD received a grant from the federal government for recruitment and used it for advertising on social media.

“Data … shows your best recruiting tool is your other police officer saying come to New Haven,” Jacobson said. “So we’ve tried to improve the conditions here. We’re working on a new contract.”

City, union in contentious negotiation over new police contract 

The NHPD has been without a contract for over a year. The city and the police union are currently in contract negotiations. 

Fair Haven/East Rock’s Alder Claudia Herrera published an opinion piece in the New Haven Independent with Fair Haven Alder Sarah Miller ’03 in October, calling for “an equitable contract that gives current and future police officers every reason to sign up and stay to serve New Haven.” 

Herrera told the News that she spoke with police officers who are thinking of leaving the department because of working conditions. The biggest concern for police officers, she said, is that there is no contract, and hence no predictability in their work. 

“I myself and additional labor attorneys have been in some ways [involved in negotiations], with the goal of finding an agreement that respects the work of the officers, and also is the right balance of what we can afford in the city,” Elicker told the News about the ongoing negotiations. “The city [has offered] a very reasonable proposal to the police union, and we are continuing back and forth [on] that negotiation. Obviously, both parties want to get the agreements on as soon as possible, but that takes a lot of work.”

Elicker’s positive outlook has not been shared by the police union.

On Nov. 9, the Official New Haven Police Union Page posted on X that Elicker was “checked out,” a year into bargaining.

“What I have seen from Mayor Elicker’s team are delaying tactics, unreasonable demands and a complete unwillingness to engage in the process,” the union account wrote. 

Herrera complained about a lack of communication from the Mayor’s office about the negotiations. 

The New Haven Police Union and Elicker did not respond to the News’ requests to comment on the negotiations in time for this story.

Herrera said that Elicker, Jacobson and New Haven Police Union President ​​Florencio Cotto should sit together and talk through the conditions, with public participation in the process. She said that she and several other alders are trying to organize a public workshop on the negotiations. 

There are 10 policing districts in New Haven.

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The Yale Police Department apprehended three non-Yale individuals — whom the YPD identified as juveniles — involved in the attempted theft in Saybrook and the Branford break-in, in addition to a non-Yale-affiliated adult who broke into Pauli Murray. 

Branford and Saybrook

According to Yale Police Chief Anthony Campbell, YPD officers were notified that four juveniles were attempting to steal bikes from the Saybrook courtyard — which is adjacent to Branford’s courtyard — at 6:34 p.m. on Monday, Nov. 27. When Yale police officers arrived on the scene, they apprehended one juvenile. Campbell added that the YPD then received a second call stating that Yale students had encountered two juveniles in a Branford suite located in entryway C.

According to Nati Tesfaye ’26, who lives in the affected suite and is a staff reporter for the News, there were four individuals involved in the break-in. At approximately 6:40 p.m., Tesfaye said, students found three juveniles inside of their suite. A fourth juvenile was outside the suite acting as a lookout. Tesfaye, who is also a staff reporter for the News, said that the three individuals in the suite took food and electronics.

Tesfaye told the News that a Branford College student who does not live in the affected suite reported the break-in to the Yale Police Department. 

While YPD did not specify whether the Saybrook and Branford incidents are linked, Campbell said that three trespassers in total were arrested, charged, given summons and released to a guardian — including the individual apprehended in the Saybrook courtyard.

The arrested individuals returned the stolen electronics once confronted by members of the suite, Tesfaye said. He added that the juveniles claimed to be students at a New Haven high school.

Branford administration did not immediately respond to requests for comment. Saybrook Dean Adam Haliburton declined to comment. 

Pauli Murray

On Monday morning, YPD officers also apprehended a non-Yale affiliated adult in Pauli Murray.

Officers discerned from video surveillance that the individual was let into the college by a Yale student, who swiped the individual into one of the Pauli Murray gates and proceeded to attempt to burglarize an unlocked suite. According to Campbell, the suspect claimed that the door to the entryway was “wide open.” 

Campbell told the News that the individual attempted to steal cell phones from a suite. 

“The suspect was arrested and charged with trespassing and burglary,” Campbell wrote in a text to the News on Nov. 28.

In an email sent to Benjamin Franklin College students at 5:50 p.m. on Monday, Head of College Jordan Peccia informed his students of the incident in Pauli Murray.  

“This morning at 6 am, an intruder entered a suite in Pauli Murray College,” Peccia wrote. “The students in the suite immediately called Yale Police; no one was harmed; no property was taken. The suspect was quickly apprehended and is now in jail.”

Danielle Lee, a member of the suite — which is located on the second floor in Murray’s entryway D — recounted the break-in. 

At approximately 5:50 a.m. on Monday, Lee woke up to find her phone in front of her suitemate’s bedroom door. Upon waking her suitemate up, they found an adult man in their suite. The man was silent and exited the room when Lee called the Yale Police.

“Keep the suites locked,” Lee said. “The hallways inside the residential colleges may not be like a part of your home… I don’t think [the man] would have gotten in if all our suite doors were locked.”

Lee said that involved police officers and Murray staff were empathetic to their experience.

Campbell told the News that YPD “typically” does not have to send a community-wide alert after making an arrest “because there is no threat to the community.”

“Stop putting tape on the doors and the hangers,” Campbell advised. “Do not let anyone you do not know into the college.” 

According to statistics published by Yale Public Safety, there were a total of 20 on-campus burglaries in 2020 and 11 cases in both 2021 and 2022. 

Apprehended juveniles are brought to the New Haven Police Department.

Update, Dec. 4: This article has been updated to include comments from a student living in the affected Pauli Murray suite.

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