Month: November 2019

Mayor Ganim Announces New Leadership

BRIDGEPORT, CT – Mayor Joe Ganim today announced new leadership staff in the Chief Administrative Office, Police and Fire Departments, as well as Labor Relations. Following a Town Hall meeting with employees last week, Mayor Ganim expressed that restructuring of city departments and staff will be imminent in order to “be the best, and do the best for our community,” he is following through with filling key leadership roles with talented and experienced individuals in various essential departments.

 

Mayor Ganim is pleased to announce the entire staff of the CAO’s Office headed up by newly appointed Chief Administrative Officer Janene Hawkins, formerly Director of Labor Relations, and the appointment of Assistant Chief Administrative Officer Reverend Dr. Herron Gaston, with Assistant Chief Administrative Officer John Gomes.

 

Labor Relations will be headed up by Interim Director Eric Amado who has been serving the city and employees as a Human Resources Administrator and Supervisor in Civil Service Office and Labor Relations since 2011.

 

In addition to the announcements of new leadership in his administration, Mayor Ganim joins Chief Perez with the Police Department to announce the appointment of Assistant Chief Rebecca Garcia, along with Chief Thode and the Fire Department to announce the promotion Deputy Chief James Buck. Contracts for each Chiefs have been forwarded to the City Council for approval. Swearing in Ceremonies will follow at a later date to be announced.

 

• Janene Hawkins has served as the city’s Director of Labor Relations for the past four years where she has provided her professional experience that illustrate her creative problem solving and team building skills among other proficiencies that make her the qualified candidate for this position. Ms. Hawkins’s education and experience include a J.D. that paved the way for her to facilitate legal negotiations between city officials and Labor Unions.

 

• Reverend Dr. Herron Gaston is known to many in our community as he actively serves as Senior Pastor and Chief Administrator of Summerfield United Methodist Church. Professionally, Dr. Gaston was employed with Yale University for seven years, and most recently as Associate Director of Admissions and Recruitment for Yale University Divinity School. Gaston is a positive community leader with notable professional organizational and extensive governmental experience that make him an ideal candidate to oversee and develop community partnerships and department accountability in the CAO’s office.

 

• Assistant Chief Rebeca Garcia has served the department since October 1991 with experience in various command and supervisor roles including Patrol, Internal Affairs, and Domestic Violence Unit. Garcia is most currently the Commander of the Training Academy teaching recruits and sworn officers de-escalation and relationship building through community awareness and interaction projects and implements POST standards.

 

• Deputy Chief James Buck has served the Bridgeport Fire Department for more than 25 years, and 18 years in a supervisor’s capacity as Captain of Communications and Emergency Management and former Assistant Chief’s Aide. Buck was selected as 2016 Firefighter of the Year and has proven to be department asset with technical, preparedness, supervisor and budgeting experience that make him the ideal addition to the Fire Department’s management team.

 

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Fairfield News: Man Doesn’t Beat Charges

2019-11-23@9:16am–#Fairfield CT– Police officers responded to a report of a male exposing himself in his car in the area of Beaconview Drive. The caller reported that the male left the scene driving a silver Audi and gave a CT license plate of the vehicle. An alert officer observed the vehicle bearing the same license plate leaving the area and conducted a traffic stop. Jonathan Dejesus (DOB 11/10/1993) of Bridgeport, was later arrested and charged with Indecent Exposure, and Disorderly Conduct after he was observed by a female victim sitting in his parked vehicle with his genitals exposed. He was also issued an infraction for Possession of Less Than 1/2 Ounce of Marijuana and Operating Without a License. Dejesus was released on bond and scheduled to appear in Bridgeport Superior Court on 12/09/2019.

 

Hwang Named to Governor’s Workforce Council

State Senator Tony Hwang (R-28) was named by Governor Ned Lamont to the Governor’s newly revamped Workforce Council, a body which will be responsible for partnering with the business community and knocking down barriers among state government agencies so that Connecticut can have the most aligned, high-quality, and equitable workforce development system in the country. The council was created by an executive order signed by the Governor who made the announcement at Naugatuck Valley Community College in Waterbury.

Senator Hwang emphasized the critical need for workforce development, “The Connecticut Office of Higher Education has found that by 2025, about 70 percent of workers will need some form of education and training beyond high school. Meeting this demand will require about 300,000 additional Connecticut residents with post-secondary or apprenticeship training.  I am excited to be part of a team that will coordinate among the important stakeholders in our workforce system, including businesses, state agencies, quasi-public and independent entities, boards, councils, and commissions, public and private education and training institutions, workforce development boards, nonprofit institutions, labor unions, and the state’s Chief Manufacturing Officer.”

The executive order the governor signed requires the council to review the state’s workforce development system and submit a report to the governor and the legislature by January 1, 2021 that makes strategic recommendations to improve the state’s workforce system in a variety of areas including better coordination, reducing barriers to training, strengthening the bridge from high school into post-secondary training and education, and emphasizing data-driven outcomes.

Garrett Moran, former president of Year Up, one of the most successful workforce development nonprofits in the country, is being appointed by Governor Lamont to serve as chair of the council and will also act as a principal advisor to the governor on workforce development.

The council will have 24 members, all of whom are appointed by the governor and represent some of Connecticut’s most influential leaders in business, education, nonprofits, and labor. Business leaders who have joined the council have comm Continue reading Hwang Named to Governor’s Workforce Council

Westport Police Department Investigates Stolen Motor Vehicle Complaint

(Westport, CT) At approximately 2:43am on the morning of Sunday November 24, 2019, the Westport Police Department was contacted by a resident in the Compo Beach area. He was reporting that he was watching out his window as his vehicle was being stolen from his driveway. The complainant provided relevant information and updates to dispatch while officers quickly began to set a perimeter around the area of the victim’s residence. Shortly after the initial call, one of our officers observed two vehicles traveling in his direction. One of these two was recognized as the vehicle that had just been reported as a stolen. The officer was able to successfully deploy Stop Sticks, which quickly flattened one of the tires on the suspect vehicle, effectively disabling it shortly after the initial contact. As it passed, the officer was also able to observe that the vehicle was occupied by a lone male. The suspect vehicle briefly left the officer’s sight as he returned to his patrol car to follow it. It was subsequently located a short distance from the initial point at which it contacted the stop sticks; on Riverside Avenue. The suspect had abandoned it, leaving it running. A secondary perimeter was set up in this area with the assistance of officers from the Norwalk Police Department and members of the Connecticut State Police. A systematic search of the area including canine tracks yielded no contact with the suspect, who is believed to have been traveling in companion with the secondary vehicle initially seen by the officer deploying the Stop Sticks. This secondary vehicle is further believed to be the one in which both left the immediate area, eluding police. As of this writing we continue to actively investigate this case and work towards positively identifying the suspect(s). The stolen vehicle was quickly returned to its owner with damage only to a rear wheel. 21:02 2 In speaking with the victim, he reported that a second car parked in his driveway had also been entered but that nothing had been taken.

 

An incident that would usually have resulted in a high speed pursuit, which could have many negative outcomes, did not, thanks to the quick thinking, quick action and coordinated effort of all those working this morning. However, for many reasons, this will not always be the end result of these types of calls. We ask that you please let this incident serve as a reminder that vehicle break- ins and stolen motor vehicles continue to occur in ours and neighboring communities at great frequency, especially in the overnight hours. In the majority of Westport cases of vehicles being entered which resulted in thefts, the doors were left unlocked. In almost all Westport cases of vehicles being stolen, keys were left inside of the unlocked vehicle. Please lock your car and bring your keys inside.

 

Please remember to take valuables out of your car for the night, such as purses, wallets and electronics. It is also good practice to keep outside lights on and motion lights activated. Please notify the police department if it appears that your vehicle was entered or if you should observe anything suspicious in your neighborhood. No one knows your neighborhood better than you do, and the information you provide is vital to our crime prevention efforts. Anyone with additional information relative to this investigation is asked to contact the Westport Police Department Detective Bureau at (203) 341-6080.

 

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Bridgeport Cops To Enforce Click It Or Ticket

Bridgeport, CT— With the biggest travel holidays upon us, The Bridgeport Police Department will be joining national and local enforcement agencies to promote safe driving and increase the protection of all motorists.

Beginning Monday November 25th until Monday December 2nd, state and local law enforcement agencies across the nation are stepping up enforcement to crack down on motorists who aren’t wearing their seat belts.

Police Chief A. J. Perez said, “Connecticut’s Department of Transportation reports that seat belt use increased significantly from 90.3% in 2017 to an all-time high of 93.7% during the May 2019 mobilization.  We encourage road safety all year-round, but the holiday season is a heavily trafficked time of year; we want to remind residents to always wear their seatbelts.  Our partnership with the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) continues to help with that initiative.”

With the Thanksgiving Weekend upon us, Connecticut’s law agencies intend to promote safe driving and increase the protection of all motorist.  Connecticut law requires all drivers and passengers in the front seat, regardless of the occupant’s age, as well as all children under 16 in all positions to wear seatbelts.  Fines start at a minimum of $92 for first offense.

To help prevent crash fatalities, the Bridgeport Police will step-up enforcement and crack down on those who don’t wear their seat belts.

Bridgeport Police will be out on the roads enforcing the State Occupant Protection laws and issuing citations to those who are unbuckled.  Arrive to Thanksgiving Diner Safe and Sound:  Buckle up-Every Trip. Every Time

For more information on the Click It or Ticket campaign, please visit www.nhtsa.gov.

 

This press release was made possible by:

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Bridgeport News: Man Shot

2019-11-24@1:50pm–#Bridgeport CT– Firefighters don’t normally go to calls when a person is shot but this time it was out their front door.  The police’s shot spotter activated (Google it if you don’t know what it is) in the 100 block of Wood Avenue.  Firefighters then located the victim in the parking lot of the tire store right across the street.  It appears the victim has non-life-threatening injuries.  A person in a blue vehicle is responsible for the shooting.

 

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