Speaking of Ivory-Towered Assholes...

Amid a rash of gun violence in Hartford’s North End, a church leader who called for armed citizens to supervise the streets has said that so far the patrols have been successful in keeping the neighborhood safe.

Archbishop Dexter Burke, senior pastor of Walk In The Light Church of God on Garden Street, said that he got “fed up” with the violence around his church back in February. After two men were shot and killed right near his congregation on Feb. 10, Burke wrote a letter on Facebook saying that area residents were teaming up with Rev. Cornell Lewis’ Self Defense Brigade.

“Folks are afraid, Hartford is unsafe,” Burke said. “The current policies are not helping. Those who criticize the patrols don’t understand the seriousness of the problem.”
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“We think it has been successful in the sense that where we usually see pockets of crime, we have seen a substantial decline,” Burke said. “It’s noticeably less. Residents of Garden Street have said they feel much safer now. We feel they have been effective and we’re going to keep doing them.”
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But Mike Lawlor, criminal justice professor at the University of New Haven and former undersecretary for criminal justice policy under former Gov. Dannel Malloy, said that armed citizen patrols carry several risks that can lead to unintended consequences. Lawlor also served as part of [Mayor] Arulampalam’s transition team on the quality of life and public safety committee for Hartford.
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The city’s police department, which has dealt with staffing issues, has 372 officers, according to Boisvert. The department is authorized to have 463 sworn personnel, ranging from patrol officers to chief. The number is down from 374 officers last summer.

Malloy was possibly the worst governor in the state in this century, and that includes a guy who served 2.5 terms as governor and two terms in Federal prison. So that Lawlor worked for him isn't exactly a stirring line on his CV.

Beyond that, his comments reflect ivory tower unrealism. He wants people to wait for Hartford to boost up its police force, but shitfire, they are down ninety officers and lost two more people. I guess he doesn't get it that nobody is beating down the door to become a Hartford cop. Those that are there can feel the siren call of suburban/exurban/rural towns that pay more, have better schools and are a lot quieter.

There comes a point where people are not willing to accept the excuse of "we can't" from local government, not when the streets are unsafe. And all of the nay-saying and carping of some ivory-towered jackass isn't going to deter them from doing what they need to.