Allan Appel Photo
Dash: Gone. Back.
It took one week for Gregory Dash to realize his heart resides on Union Avenue.
After only two years on the job, Dash decided to start a family and for that he needed more money. So he left the force at the end of 2017 when he began training to become a Connecticut state trooper.
Mistake.
“I loved the work I was doing here, ” Dash said during a brief but emotional appearance before the Board of Police Commissioners Tuesday night.
He was seeking commissioners’ approval to be rehired, as Chief Anthony Campbell was recommending.
Dash’s desire to return to the NHPD runs counter to the trend of young cops leaving the department for better-paying jobs out of town.
Asst Chief Racheal Cain, Chief Campbell, Asst. Chief Tony Reyes.
Dash was part of that trend. It took his leaving to realize how much he liked the work he was doing , which included being part of a team that arrested a fleeing suspect recovered a stolen BMW that had been involved in a series of cell phone robberies.
That occurred just weeks after his graduating from the academy in August 2016.
Dash said he had consulted his family about the decision to become a state trooper. Then he consulted with them about returning to New Haven, and they supported his decision.
“I understood I wouldn’t have a community [as a state trooper]. I’d be out on the highway. After the first week, I knew this [New Haven] is where I wanted to be,” he said.
“So you turned down a lot of money because you love New Haven?” queried Commissioner Greg Smith.
Commission Chair Anthony Dawson and Commissioner Greg Smith.
Dash nodded in the affirmative.
Smith complimented Dash, with whose work he had been familiar in the Dwight police district.
“He’s a very good, mild-mannered, respectful officer,” Smith said. “Thank you, and good luck.”
With that, the commissioners unanimously voted yes, and Dash was hired back.