With the force less than fully staffed, New Haven police are going door-to-door in their effort to recruit new officers. They spent a perfect summer afternoon on Wednesday canvassing the Dixwell and Newhallville neighborhoods.
"It's a pivotal moment because we're down close to 90 police officers," says Assistant Police Chief David Zannelli. "So, what we want to do is hire as many competent and qualified people as possible from the community."
That's a job that's tougher than it sounds, with a rigorous officer training process and departments nationwide having a tough time finding willing applicants.
New Haven has the added challenge of tough recent headlines: a city man, Randy Cox, was paralyzed in a police transport van, then dragged by his feet before receiving medical attention. Five police officers are on paid leave. The state inspector general is investigating.
Asked if recent events make recruiting tougher, Zannelli says, "Absolutely, they do. We're not going to make any excuses. We are suffering the same negative trends in recruitment as every agency across the country."
He believes, however, the NHPD still has a strong base of community support, and that tapping the city as one source of new police officers will assist New Haven's goal of further developing a diverse force.
"A lot of the best practices are to show that you have a police department that represents the community," says Zannelli. "The theory is that people see police officers that look like them, they'll be more trusting."
He says trust is a factor in the door-to-door campaign: "A lot of time when we get city people to apply to become police officers in their own city, people will recognize those individuals and trust them more."
