Police Chief Anthony Campbell took a look at a body-camera video of an arrest on the New Haven Green — and what he saw disturbed him.
It disturbed him enough that he ordered an internal investigation opened Thursday into the incident.
The incident involved the arrest of a 25-year-old man on the New Haven Green late Tuesday afternoon. The arrestee, Jerome Richardson, and his allies say the cops provoked an argument with him, falsely arrested him, and used excessive force. The cops say their officers used restraint as Richardson taunted them and prevented them from handling three separate, simultaneous tense public-safety matters. (Click here for a full story on the incident; here for a raging reader debate with strong views on both sides.)
“Based on my initial review of the video I am disheartened by the way the situation was handled. But I will set aside judgment until the investigation has been completed,” Campbell told the Independent. “I’m also interested in seeing the other body camera footage of the other officers.
“Whenever there is a question that the rights of an individual have been violated, it has the potential to diminish our relationship with our community.”
The police released a video of the arrest, from an officer’s body camera, at the request of the Independent. (It appears at the top of this story.) The department fully outfitted the force with the cameras last November; Campbell said this incident shows why they’re needed.
Thomas Breen Photo
Chief Campbell: This is serious.
“I am so thankful for those body cameras. Now we have a tool so everyone can see what happens. Not just the community, but our officers, the bulk of whom do their job right every day and don’t violate people’s rights.”
“Thank God we’re not having shootings of black unarmed individuals” in New Haven, Campbell said. “In my experience, the number-one complaint that has been brought to internal affairs is people feel they are not being treated with decency and respect by officers. The body cameras help us to determine whether those claims are true. I will be reviewing the body camera footage of all the officers involved to see if that is the case” with Tuesday’s incident.
“I have desperately been trying to convey to the community — particularly the minority community — that transparency is so important to this department. It is the foundation of our relationship with the community. We solve crimes when we are transparent.”