The state started investigating a police protest that shut down Church Street. City police commissioners prepared a special meeting to discuss an alleged “blue flu” of city cops angered over the layoffs of 16 of their ranks. And the founder of the Guardian Angels swept into town to settle a PR score with New Haven’s police union.
Those were the latest developments as tensions continue to mount between the police union and city officials since Thursday’s layoffs.
The Board of Police Commissioners prepared to hold a special meeting this week to look into alleged abuse of sick time in the department in the wake of an alleged “blue flu” of city cops angered by the layoffs.
Police Chief Frank Limon said the state’s attorney’s office has informed him it is looking into a police protest that shut down Church Street.
Also, the controversy offered a new publicity opportunity for the Guardian Angels. Thirty Angels arrived from out-of-state Sunday after their founder, Curtis Sliwa, read a published remark from the police union president advising New Haveners to arm themselves due to insufficient police presence.
Paul Bass Photo
Guardian Angel Miguel Limardo patrolled Edgewood.
Angels founder Curtis Sliwa delighted in noting that police union President Louis Cavaliere had previously declared that the cops don’t need the vigilante group patrolling New Haven streets. Sliwa said he decided to redeploy 30 out-of-state Angels to the city after reading police union officials’ statements last week suggesting that New Haveners arm themselves for protection because of layoff-generated reductions in patrols.
“The police union chief suggested since he has 17 less cops that that the people of New Haven should go out and get guns to protect themselves,” Sliwa said while standing outside the police substation on Whalley Avenue. “My suggestion is before you go that route, you ought to welcome anyone who’s willing to come in here, whether they have a pink cowboy hat on, whether they’re Marines coming back from Fallujah.”
When the Angels starting sending their beret-wearing patrols into town for occasional duty and photo ops, Cavaliere had said that they’re not welcome here, that the police don’t need the help keeping the streets safe.
Cavaliere Sunday and Monday failed to return calls seeking a response.
Sick-Pay Reckoning
Chief Limon said he has initiated an investigation into why 40 percent of the cops scheduled to work the Thursday overnight shift called in sick instead. He said if he finds it was a deliberate misuse of sick time, he will consider recommending disciplinary action ranging from reprimands to firings.
“Officers that are booking off because of the continuing job action are really risking their jobs, because it is illegal. They should really think about their families, whether it’s a mother, father, wife, husband, kids, when they make that decision,” Limon said.
“The officers should be reminded they took an oath of office to serve the community. The community pays our salaries. If they call in sick, and they’re not sick, to me that is unethical. That’s why we’re looking at it.”
Limon Saturday asked the Board of Police Commissioners to schedule a special meeting this coming week to discuss overall sick-time policy in light of the alleged blue flu. While sparked by the low show on the overnight shift last week, the meeting will probably focus on broader sick-time concerns that have been percolating in the department. The fire department has wrestled with similar concerns lately.
Police Commission Chairman Richard Epstein said Sunday he expects the special meeting to take place late in the week because of the need for advance public notice.
Local 530 Treasurer Sgt. Anthony Zona denied that the police union organized a sick-out.
“We knew nothing,” he said. “Listen. If guys call in sick, they’re sick as far as I’m far as I’m concerned. He can do his investigation. The burden of proof will be on him to show they’re not sick. We tell our members sick days are for when you’re sick.”
Criminal Probe?
Meanwhile, Limon said he was informed by the state’s attorney’s office that it has initiated its own probe into a protest march by 200 officers Thursday morning. It started at Union Station and ended at City Hall, shutting down Church Street with sirens wailing. Read about that here; watch the video clip at the top of this story for highlights.
Limon said he saw no signs of a sick-out continuing on Saturday. He said the city experienced two non-fatal shootings over Friday night into Saturday morning.
He said he does not see a reason to launch his own separate investigation into that incident.
Sgt. Zona said the police close streets all the time for protests. He questioned why this one case would be cause for an investigation.
He cited a recent visit to Newhallville by Bill Cosby to urge parents to keep their kids in school.
“Do we have to lock Bill Cosby up next time he comes?” Zona asked. “This is ridiculous. We closed streets. He was walking around. It was a great cause. I didn’t see the mayor in an uproar then about closing streets.
“You open a big can of worms here. If you’re going to enforce that with us, then you probably need to enforce that with everyone. Every time someone has a protest and they stand outside a business, you have to enforce the law.”
Limon’s decision to take a strong stand against the alleged sick-out contrasts with his reaction to the participation of 200 officers — including some on-duty personnel — in a Thursday morning rally on the police station steps. The officers then went upstairs to the chief’s floor for a heated verbal exchange over the layoffs.
“They needed their space to act out their emotions,” Limon said Saturday night. “What they did here at 1 Union and what they did upstairs about supporting the officers getting laid off and some of the emotional expressions they had, I was OK with that. Once they left here and walked down to City Hall and protested on the street, they definitely crossed a line.”
Epstein agreed.
“This is not an ideal situation. Nobody likes anybody being laid off, never mind police officers. Blockading Church Street was probably not in the best sense of our citizens,” he said. Now, he said, “we go forward.”
Guardian Angels founder Curtis Sliwa at Whalley and Norton.