Public Safety Committee leaders cite professional standards and legal obligations in
inter-agency coordination 

HARTFORD — Two leaders on the legislature's Public Safety and Security Committee have strongly condemned criticism of the Hamden Police Department following an ICE raid at Optimo Car Wash, warning that political interference in law enforcement protocols could endanger officers and the public.

State Representatives Michael DiGiovancarlo (D-Waterbury) and Greg Howard (R-Stonington) said officials in Hamden are off-base for their criticism of their local police department regarding a failure to notify the public of an impending operation that federal law enforcement made Hamden PD aware of. The two state lawmakers, both active-duty police officers, emphasized that inter-agency notification is a standard professional courtesy that federal and state law enforcement agencies routinely extend to local departments when operating within their jurisdiction.

"A failure of this type of communication between agencies could result in chaos and confusion, putting officers and the public at risk if local police do not have advance notice of other agencies operating in their jurisdiction," the legislators said.

The lawmakers also addressed concerns about potential breaches of confidentiality, noting that alerting the public to pending law enforcement operations would constitute a serious violation of professional standards.

"In any other case, if an employee within a law enforcement agency provided information, they had by virtue of their employment to the public to impede or intercede with an investigation, they would be fired and potentially arrested," said DiGiovancarlo, the committee's House Vice Chairman.

Howard, House Ranking Member of the committee, raised additional legal concerns about the position in which Hamden's political leaders are placing local officers.

"If any of these federal officers are authorized to enforce Title 21 of the U.S. Code, a notice by Hamden PD of their impending actions could constitute a violation of state law,” he said.

Both legislators, who have worked extensively on addressing Connecticut's law enforcement recruitment and retention crisis, warned that the state cannot allow officers to be forced to choose between potential criminal liability and administrative consequences.

"This is exactly what political leaders in Hamden are doing," DiGiovancarlo and Howard said, calling for an end to rhetoric that places local law enforcement in an untenable position.