NEW HAVEN, Conn — Mayor Justin Elicker was joined by neighboring law enforcement and city officials Tuesday to provide an update on the shooting task force.
There was an initial discussion earlier to discuss restarting the task force.
It will consist of up to 13 people in total. City officials and police said their main goal is to get suspects off the streets and bring justice to suffering families.
"This is a very trying time for all of our communities. I go to the wakes and families who have lost, I knock on doors after homicides," said Mayor Elicker of the City of New Haven.
Elicker said too many times, someone is shot and killed innocently. That is when police step in to try and find those responsible, but sometimes detectives take longer than they expect because it is a one-man force.
By collaborating with regional departments, the task force which will include the DEA and FBI can speed up the process which in turn, can get shooters off the streets quicker.
"It's not just incidents of gunfire. Each one of those has the potential to have connected with a victim and if someone is shooting in a particular area, and we have shell casings but no victim, that doesn't mean somebody's not going to come back and to try and shoot that individual again," said New Haven Police Chief Renee Dominguez.
Dominguez brought up the murder of Yale graduate student Kevin Jiang where according to the arrest warrant, multiple shell casings were found in different towns like Hamden.
With this task force, the technology, resources, and manpower can help figure out those specific details.
She said between 2020 and 2021, an average of 30-percent of shootings went down and she is hoping this task force will help reduce crime even more.
Hamden Mayor Curt Leng and Meriden Mayor Kevin Scarpati contributed to the message and emphasized residents play a role in solving crimes as well.
"Every single individual has an opportunity to prevent violence. Lock a gun, talk to someone, explain," said Mayor Leng.
'you have a responsibility as well and as I have stated in many other press conferences, we need your help. The community has a responsibility," said Mayor Scarpati.
This task force will not cost the city or residents any money and it is a combination of the existing resources between the different departments.
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