At Least 2 People Want To Serve On Civilian Review

Westville/West Hills will be able to forward the applications of at least two people who want to be appointed to the city’s new Civilian Review Board.

That’s a start.

With just a month left before Mayor Toni Harp will have to decide on the 15 names she will forward to the Board of Alders to vet for the new CRB, Westville/West Hill neighbors learned during a management team meeting Wednesday evening at Mauro-Sheridan School that so far the mayor doesn’t have much from which to select.

That’s because management teams have been slow to forward at least one name from each management team yet. And that’s mostly because people haven’t submitted names. (Read more about that here.)They’ve been confused about whether they had to create a process for receiving and vetting names and how much sway the management teams are supposed to have on the names that are eventually forwarded to Harp.

The Westville/West Hills Community Management Team (CMT) got some clarity at its monthly meeting Wednesday. Angela Clinton and Erica Holahan, two Ward 25 residents who have actively worked in support of establishing a new CRB, told neighbors that work has been ongoing in the last month to clarify the process but also to remind people that applications are due by May 9.

“People can nominate themselves. They can even come from outside the CMT,” Clinton said. ​“But they must be recommended by the CMT.”

As of Wednesday, Westville/West Hills Co-Chair Marjorie Weiner said she hadn’t received any applications. But two people in the room — New Haven Legal Assistance Association attorney James Bhandary-Alexander and startup advisor Dennis Serfilippi — let it be known that they plan to throw their names in the hat.

Both said they have expertise in the area of police misconduct. Bhandary-Alexander has represented people who have sued over alleged police misconduct. Serfilippi filed an internal affairs complaint back in 2017 about alleged misconduct, which was ultimately deemed unsubstantiated for lack of evidence. He also took the New Haven Police Department to federal court for violating his civil rights. (The court sided with the cops.)

Bhandary-Alexander said he’s interested in serving not only because of his background but because he believes he has the time to devote to a crucial endeavor for the city. He said he’s currently not serving on any other boards and would be willing to devote his time and expertise to make sure the city had a ​“high quality” board that reflects the 20 years of work put into its re-establishment.

“It’s an important thing to do because it involves the relationship between the community and the police,” he said.

Serfilippi offered similar thoughts, noting that he might be known for his own run-in with the police but has also become a regular at the weekly Compstat meetings down at 1 Union Ave. He said he has made it a point to get to know Westville/West Hills top cop Lt. Rose Dell, who was the head of Internal Affairs when he filed his complaint.

“People really aren’t speaking with one another,” he said. ​“They’re talking ateach other.”

He said when people get to know each other, they realize very quickly that everyone is human. And instead of the CRB being weaponized against one particular group, he sees it as an opportunity to further facilitate community-police relations.

Clearing The Confusion

Westville neighbor Kate Bradley said she still had some confusion about what exactly the CMT’s role should be in submitting names to the mayor. Is the CMT responsible for vetting people before submitting names? Can it decide not to submit certain names?

“This process seems a little chaotic,” she said.

Angela Clinton said on one level, it’s up to the CMT if it wants a process that involved, for instance, ranking applicants. But she noted that time is short.

Beverly Hills/Amity Alder Richard Furlow, who also serves as the majority leader, said that the CMTs are simply a conduit for the applications and don’t have to do anything more than receive and forward recommended names and applications to the mayor’s office by May 9. The Board of Alders handles the ultimate public vetting of the mayor’s choices.

“CMTs are getting way too involved,” he said. ​“They don’t have to get wrapped in the politics of it.”

Laura Cahn reminded fellow neighbors that the aldermanic confirmation process is public; people can testify for or against a particular nominee. They can also write letters of support or opposition.

“You get grilled,” said Cahn, who currently chairs the city’s Environmental Advisory Council and has been through the confirmation process. ​“And it’s a good grilling.”