Why Should I Sign This Petition?
New London, CT's current record handling policy unlawfully repeals the basic civil rights of low-income residents by charging up to $400 to view police records, and this has to stop now.
Our city's current policy under City Attorney, Londregan, mocks the poor as well as the authority of the State. It does so by throwing out the findings of the State's FOI Commission. That is the authority on public record handling in CT which has ruled that police body camera records in New London, must be provided upon request at little to no cost to its residents. As taxpayers in charge, we hereby repeal any assumed permission given to our city's officials to charge a fee for obtaining police records. Officials must now comply with the State's authority regarding their handling of public records.
PETITION TO CITY OF NEW LONDON
We hereby instruct NL City Attorney, Jeffrey Londregan to comply with our State's existing FOI rules, by advising NLPD to provide public body cam records at little to no cost.
64 signatures confirmed
We hereby instruct city employees from our Police Chief, Mr. Wright, to our city attorney, Mr. Londregan, to cease and desist from all efforts aimed at charging fees to residents who request police body camera records. Mr. Londregan is instructed to immediately terminate his costly legal battle aimed at codifying this misguided assault on residents' civil freedoms, into legally accepted policy. The law does not accept this policy and more importantly, neither do we, Jeffrey.
Who's Asking?
The New London Police Oversight Committee strives for transparency and accountability in law enforcement. We engage with the community to ensure a trust-based relationship between the citizens and the police. Discover more about our mission and get involved today
Action Steps to Take Now:
- Step 1: Sign the petition above if you haven't already.
- Step 2: Share this page with your friends and family.
- Step 3: Stay informed at newlondonvoice.com to engage with local community organizations.
We forbid our city's officials from perpetuating the cycle of mistrust fueled by the NLPD's claims that it may start charging fees for public records. Our police, along with Mr. Londregan are simply mistaken, as these are the same records that our State's Constitution and FOI Commission guarantee are free for anyone to obtain.
We urge you to join us in instructing our City Attorney, Jeffrey Londregan, to stop using our tax monies to uphold the city's current unlawful policy that hinders justice and violates State rules established by our rightfully elected officials to protect low-income residents from essentially being gamed by police. Only access to police body camera records can demonstrate police misconduct, while clearing the names of the undisclosed low-income segment of our accused residents. Charging hundreds of dollars is not permitted in our Nation nor is it permitted in our State, nor is it permitted by the respective taxpayers of both.
Therefore this practice is going to be terminated upon first receipt of this document by New London's elected city leaders and our City's Attorney, Mr. Jeffrey Londregan.
Police body cam footage alone shows the very specific and concerning policing practices that are described by New London residents in detail.
We certainly need more than anything that Chief, Wright has brought to the table to date.
Be advised that a unified majority of New London residents no longer grant permission to the NL Police Department to charge three-hundred hundred dollars, or similar amounts for the observed "purchase" of our public records in the form of police body camera videos.
The knowledge that their daily routine is publicly visible, and only that knowledge, can motivate better policing behavior(s).
The high price tag on NLPD body cam records is the most effective way to silence low-income residents from showing a truth that is unwanted.
Most of us can't afford the price our City Attorney thinks police can attach to our public records of ourselves, during police interactions,
In fact, there is no such thing as the required purchase of police evidence in order to clear an American defendant's name in any courtroom, our city attorney has advised our local Police to make this idea up, and to enforce it using deadly weapons and local American courts like GA10. Is there a good reason as to why low-income defendants in New London are now effectively forced to plea to any criminal charge they face, without any access to the unbiased public video records that show what happened, we're forcing plea deals which can now relate to crimes that may never have even happened in reality, where the accused are low-income residents who cannot afford the public record showing their innocence. This new concept in local American justice systems can only be found in New London, CT The new concept of paying for the truth, leaves the topic of alleged police misconduct a convenient mystery in all cases for which it's alleged.
New London's novel idea about basic civil rights as being disposable for those with low incomes, means that City Council members will not need to consider our problem with police misconduct all too often, in their handling of local police matters. Specifically we avoid handling all matters that come with a widely known, reported set of unwritten policing practices that remain in place today. These unwritten practices in local policing include a widely reported NLPD ritual of arresting city residents who refuse a request to search, for their alleged Breach of Peace. Note that the GA10 court remains ready, willing and able to prosecute such cases along with the others. It were as though police misconduct were perceived as an equally valid grounds upon which to arrest and then criminalize innocent taxpayers, but only within the City of New London and nowhere else in the nation.
Police body cam footage should be available to residents in all brackets. Be advised by the majority of City residents, that the required "purchase" of local police body cam records severely violates our trust.
Of even greater concern, is the fact that unique misinterpretation of our civil rights, deprives low-income residents living in New London, CT of our most basic civil right, to see evidence that exonerates us, or that which clears our name.
If New London continued to charge hundreds of dollars for such police records, such practice would only serve to offer police an additional, undue protection from low-income residents' claims of misconduct. It would do so while clearly removing the Federal and State civil rights of the low-income accused. This is a group or segment of residents that is disproportionately subjected to local policing activity already, before having their basic rights quashed by attaching price deliberately exorbitant tags to public records.
More on Chief Brian Wright
More questions than answers.
Read One Resident's Letter to City Attorney
RUMMAGE THROUGH THE ARCHIVES WHY NOT?
NL Attorney Jeff Londregan
Public Defenders Office
Recent findings by the CT FOI Commission endorsed public access to police body cam footage at no cost, a step towards transparency and justice. However, New London Police are charging $200-$400 for such requests, a barrier for many, especially low-income individuals. This page urges you to sign the petition against these prohibitive costs, and calls on City Attorney, Jeffrey Londregan, to stop defending this financial barrier to truth.
Further Information As to Why You Should Want To Sign The Petition Above:
Under Connecticut's State's Freedom of Information Commission, the for-profit retailing police body cam records for hundreds of dollars is legally prohibited, But we do it anyway in New London, as per the advice of our city attorney. So, while police videos have shown criminal conduct by New London police in the past, and although State law forbids it, NLPD currently thumbs its nose at the poor and at the rule of law itself by hawking the truth about what they do at work.