Mayor, PD chief discuss violence streak

HARTFORD, Conn. (WTNH) -- Hartford Mayor Pedro Segarra met with the town's acting police chief Monday morning to discuss the weekend's streak of violent crime.

As families put up makeshift memorials to those killed over the weekend on Hartford streets, the Mayor was trying to assure residents police have things under control.

It was a violent weekend with two stabbings, two homicides and several shootings across the city that injured nine people. 24-year-old Michael Bailey, Jr. died on Ashley Street and a 16-year-old Dajon Walcott of Windsor was killed in a driveway on Thomaston Street. Both had been shot.

All of these incidents are under investigation by the city's Major Crimes Division.
    
The spike prompted the mayor to meet behind closed doors with Acting Police Chief James Rovella.

Both say police are sticking to an existing plan of increasing visible patrols in the summer.

"Historically, shootings begin to go up in May, June, July, August," Rovella said. "We try to address that early on, for instance we had a very good May, but June just picked up this weekend."

The mayor is going to ask Gov. Dannel Malloy for help, but not for uniformed state troopers to be on the streets, rather funds to increase programs for those just getting out of prison.

"While we will reach out to the state for resources, they don't necessarily come in the form of troopers," Segarra said.

So far, no arrests have been made in connection with these shootings.

Anyone with information on these incidents is asked to contact Major Crimes Sergeant Brandon O'Brien, at 860-757-4089.