Issue Position: Public Safety

Issue Position

Crime has no border. From the east side of Ridge Hill to the west side of Dunbar Hill, neighborhoods in the district have occasionally experienced break-in, thefts and related crimes. I know first-hand: our house in Hamden was burglarized when I was in High School. As a former Police Commissioner, I also know how hard our officers work to prevent such crimes. But they have limited resources. As state representative, I will protect the funding for the men and women who protect us, and help find federal and grants for equipment and training. There is also a need for additional police substations -- particularly in lower State Street in Hamden.

The community can do more too. Certainly, the block-watch movement is one effort. Hamden residents can learn from the well-organized campaigns of neighbors participating in block watch committees.

On a more fundamental level, crime-prevention and education are related. On the Board of Education, for example, we have worked collaboratively with our police department, training our teachers to recognize and report gang-related signs and activity. It is also well-documented that increased discipline and school dropout rates are directly linked to future involvement of students in crime. To address this "School to Prison Pipeline", we have dramatically reduced the number of out of school suspensions and expulsions in Hamden by identifying and intervening with at-risk students early, before their discipline problems lead them out of school and into prison. Hamden also has one of the lowest drop out rates in the State. As your representative, I will work with administrators and parents to expand efforts to keep students on the right path.

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