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FAIRFIELD COUNTY, Conn. – The deadly shooting of a black teenager by a community block watch leader in Florida last month has stirred nationwide civil rights protests. But a similar tragedy is unlikely in Fairfield County, say police and Neighborhood Watch leaders.
“I don’t believe anything like that could happen in Fairfield County,” Norwalk Police Chief Harry Rilling said. “It’s when you put people out on the street who feel they have some kind of enforcement authority that those kinds of tragedies occur."
Connecticut is not one of the 23 states with a “Stand Your Ground” law that allows citizens to use deadly force even outside their homes when feeling threatened or without requiring retreat. In 2005, Florida was the first state to explicitly expand a person's right to use deadly force for self-defense.
Neighborhood Watch programs in Fairfield County encourage residents to report suspicious activity, but people are “never, ever expected to act as vigilantes,” said Rilling.
“We don’t want any citizen taking matters in their own hands, and certainly never using weapons,” he said. “Neighborhood Watch is for people to be the eyes and ears for police. But we make it clear citizens should never go out and confront anyone.”
But that’s what happened in the killing of 17-year-old Trayvon Martin in Sanford, Fla., when block watch captain George Zimmerman pursued the youth – who was returning home after buying candy for his brother — even after being advised by a 911 operator to back off.
Zimmerman’s pursuit and the failure by police to arrest him sparked a raging national debate over the “Stand Your Ground” law.
“If an African-American man is walking in a white neighborhood and not bothering anyone, that is not a reason to call police. If that same person is peering into a house or car windows, regardless of race, people should call us right away,” Rilling said.
Despite accusations by minorities throughout Fairfield County that police use racial profiling to target African Americans and other minorities driving through white communities, Neighborhood Watch leaders say a person’s race should not be considered.
“It’s not about racial profiling. It’s about the behavior, not the person’s skin color people should be looking at,” said Fairfield Police Lt. James Perez.
Perez, head of the department’s Special Services Unit, said Fairfield has one of the most extensive Neighborhood Watch programs in the region. It has been “completely reorganized and reinvigorated” in the past few years.
“Our town was very active in Neighborhood Watch when the national program kicked off during the 1970s,” said Perez. “But as the years went on it faded away in many areas. Now, it’s very active again.”
Neighborhood Watch participants in Fairfield must attend five two-hour training sessions at the police department, Perez said. That training includes learning simple ways to prevent crime, such as locking doors, looking out for neighbors not at home and reporting suspicious activity to police.
Joan Keane, who has lived in the Greenfield Hill section of Fairfield for more than 40 years, said she became involved about three years ago after a rash of break-ins.
“When there is a string of burglaries, or a suspicious person or car spotted in the area, we alert people with emails that includes a description of the person or vehicle,” said Keane. “It’s important to get to know your neighbors.”
In urban areas such as South Norwalk, Ernest Dumas, founder and president of the South Main Street Neighborhood Association and a Neighborhood Watch leader, said the program is also being revitalized.
“We’re determined to get people more involved, the way they were in the 1990s,” said Dumas, a District B ward leader and member of the Democratic Town Committee. “We have gangs, drug dealing and speeding cars. People are scared, and Neighborhood Watch is a way to help police do their job.”
Dumas said that as an African American, the fatal shooting in Florida has touched him deeply. He said he does not care about a person’s race when they are “criminals destroying our neighborhoods."
“It doesn’t matter to me if a drug dealer or gang leader is white, black or Hispanic. I want them off the streets,” he said.
New Canaan Police Lt. Vincent DeMaio, head of investigative services, said his town’s Neighborhood Watch program was revived a few years ago after many burglaries occurred near the Stamford border.
“It’s always a good idea to have an active Neighborhood Watch program, but with the advent of cellphones and other technology, it has made these programs a little antiquated,” DeMaio said. “But people in a neighborhood understand the ebb and flow and know who belongs and doesn’t … even better than police.”
Comments (11)
Of course it could happen here. If it did and the investigating officers concluded it was justifiable self defense, the prosecutor agreed, and no arrest was made, Harry Rilling and the prosecutor would not step aside and turn their responsibilities over to someone else. Both would defend the decision that was made, with their agreement, as supported by the evidence.
If, on the other hand, it happened here and the evidence did not support a self-defense story, the shooter would be arrested, no matter who it was. The charge would probably not be murder, but there would be an arrest.
CT law has a provision for the use of deadly force in self defense as a last resort, while FL law is a little different and deadly force in self defense is not limited to a last resort with no requirement to retreat, if possible.
This incident happened a month ago. Why has it just now become an issue ?
Noplace in anything I'v read or listened to did I hear anything suggesting this was race related, except by those who are turning it into just that. Zimmerman I heard answer a question by the 911 operator that the guy was black, thats it.
This has little to do with stand your ground laws & the fact is CT would do well to adopt such common sense legislation. To try to say that a common sense self defense law is to blame for what went on there is simply misleading. A person should be able to defend themselves wherever they are, period without fearing prosecution. The police cant protect us, its not even their job and I certainly have alot of respect for them but they simply cannot be everyplace all the time.
Nobody knows what went on in Fla, but the facts might end up showing that Zimmerman was going back to his vehicle as directed & was assaulted and really did act in self defense. If thats not what went on then so be it, charge him acordingly. But dont try to say it cant happen here because we dont have a common sense law. We certainly know that its very possible to be a victim of violent crime in the city of Norwalk and a law allowing people a piece of mind if they need to defend themselves is pretty common sense. Nobody can say if crime would drop because our elected officials & chiefs refuse to give it a try. Even if it didnt effect crime at least it lets a person take care of themselves. Every officer on the street carries a gun, as they should, even directing traffic. When a tragedy across the country involving a police officer happens nobody says we shouldnt let them defend themselves, they're people, their lives matter, well so do the lives of victims of violent crime. People have been poised since these laws were enacted, waiting to pounce on something like this. Shame on them, our states constitution states clearly that "EVERY CITIZEN HAS A RIGHT TO BEAR ARMS IN DEFENSE OF THEMSELVES & THE STATE" It doesnt say we have a right to run & call the police. You can bet your butt that if that young man were beating a cops head on the ground, even for unjustly detaining him, deadly force would be justified. Zimmerman could have been wrong every step of the way, but if that young man attacked him he had a right to defend himself and if he ends up in jail over it THAT will be racism.
If there was a broken nose and other head injury, it sure does NOT show in the video of Zimmerman being brought, in handcuffs, into the police station. As this story leaks out, a drop at a time, it is not pretty. The police apparently arrested Zimmerman at the scene, based on what they observed, and his story. Some lawyer, an assistant district attorney, apparently later told them to unarrest him because charges against him would be hard to prove in light of the "stand your ground" law.
If a cop had killed a 17 year unarmed teenager under these circumstances, there would have been a lot more serious investigation, any injury the shooter claimed would have been documented by a doctor ASAP, and, if a decision was made that the shooting was justified, both the police chief and the district attorney would stand behind it,
Dont you think that paramedics would have cleaned him up & treated him at the scene? Or that the officers present could tell if he had just been beaten or not? I mean, they were there, they dont need to see video footage or try to puzzle it out. I think its pretty far fetched to believe that the police & DA, both of which stand to lose if they screwed up, would decline to press charges based on a self defense claim if the guy didnt look beat up.
The investigation is ongoing just like if a cop had shot him, biggest difference is Zimmerman needs to fund his own defense while an officer would have much better resources.
Of course it can happen in Easton and any other place. When a stranger came up to you and started to attack you, you'd do everything to defend yourself, including firing your gun (if you happen to have it with you). This Florida case is not a "stand your ground" case. It's a simple old fashion "self-defense" case.
Now they have released the story that this 17 yr old kid, Trayvon, attacked the guy, Zimmerman, who had been following him, punched him on the nose,knocked him down, and was banging his head on the pavement when Zimmerman shot him. If this is the original story from Zimmerman, supported by some physical evidence, the question is why wasn't this released right away ? If this is a story that Zimmerman just now came up with, he should be arrested now and find out if a jury buys it.
Releasing this story now, all this time later, after so many have gotten involved in protests, there is not much chance anybody is going to believe it. If it is true, why did the local chief step down instead of defending the decision to not arrest Zimmerman ?
And the broken nose was a lie too? And what about the eyewitness who saw Zimmerman being hit repeatedly by kid who was on top of him? Was he a liar too?
It is ridiculous to assume anything cant happen here, CT is home to the Petit family murders, the Donnelly murders, Michael Ross was executed on death row for murdering 8 women...
Until the full scope of what happened in Florida comes to light people can wax poetic on the dangers of the "castle doctrine" but this just advertised to all the would be home invaders and thieves in CT and they are out there that the law continues to be on their side... Brilliant.
Oh Please Harry stop giving your opinion you have become irrelevant..You have lost control of Norwalk crime and the police department that you are paid to manage.It's time to resign as the NPD is a complete and total failure.Shooting after Shooting...Killing after Killing and None solved after None solved..What do we hear from you Excuse after Excuse..Do the right thing and quit so someone outside the NPD can clean house from th top down.
There has been nothing reported about the guy in Florida ever being instructed about neighborhood watch. He apparently nominated himself as a self-appointed watchman/armed security guard and made regular rounds with a big dog and a 9mm on his hip. He should have been stopped a long time ago. To say something like that couldn't happen here is to say we don't have people carrying guns who are really stupid, with delusions about the danger of 17yr old boys in hoodies walking around. Florida's "stand your ground " law may be part of a defense when the shooter goes to trial, but it does NOT justify any confrontation just because someone he didn't recognise was walking through a neighborhood. Unless there is real evidence he was attacked by this kid he shot, that law is not going to be much help. The more of the story that comes out, the more we wonder why he was not arrested that night. He apparently claimed the shooting was self defense and the cops went along with his story, ignoring signs he may have instigated the fatal confrontation.
We hope something like this is very unlikely in our neighborhoods and understand ranking police officers making reassuring statements, but any cop on the street can tell you there are enough crazies around with deep seated prejudices to make anything possible.
It's tragic that the events unfolded in Florida. We don't have a neighborhood watch in our part of Norwalk but that's not to say we're crime free. To state though that this could never happen in Norwalk is really pretty silly. It's like saying to the tenants at Avalon that there's no problem with crime in the area and that it's a very safe neighborhood.