A public hearing on Monday at Hartford Public High School heard residents' input on a bill that would clarify state laws on police officers' authority to make arrests outside of their own towns.
The proposal, drafted by State Representative Matthew Ritter, comes one year after an article published in The Atlantic by former Major League Baseball player Doug Glanville described his encounter with a West Hartford police officer while shoveling snow in front of his home in Hartford. It's titled, "I was Racially Profiled In My Own Driveway," and gained national attention.
From the article:
A police officer from West Hartford had pulled up across the street, exited his vehicle, and begun walking in my direction. I noted the strangeness of his being in Hartford—an entirely separate town with its own police force—so I thought he needed help. He approached me with purpose, and then, without any introduction or explanation he asked, “So, you trying to make a few extra bucks, shoveling people’s driveways around here?”
Ritter said he "recognizes the collective nature of enforcing the law," but believes the bill is reasonable, and would not impede police officers from pursing investigations, misdemeanors or felonies.
"There is a collective nature of enforcing the law, an effort where region-wide collaboration is necessary to maintain law enforcement's ability to do good work when a serious crime is involved," Ritter said. "At times, judicious and expeditious inter-district cooperation is imperative. This is important to understand. However, these efforts do not need to spill into the enforcement of municipal law outside one's municipality."
In a release, Glanville said, "I hope this bill is supported statewide by both citizens and law enforcement. This is a significant step towards limiting the avoidable exchanges that lead to misunderstanding, risk, tension, and overreaction. Yet, we will need to take more steps for our communities to trust we are committed to neutral, unbiased law enforcement, especially near our borders. Our country is in a challenging time with how our laws are enforced. Let Greater Hartford and the state of Connecticut rise to the challenge and set the bar."
The public is invited to the hearing, which will explain the proposed bill. In lieu of attending the hearing, a testimony may be submitted to phctestimony@cga.ct.gov (Enter "HB 6863" in the subject line) or directed to Ritter's office at the Connecticut State Capitol, 210 Capitol Avenue, Hartford, Connecticut, 06106.
