Pubdate: 22 Jun 1999 Source: New Haven Register (CT) Copyright: 1999, New Haven Register Contact: http://www.ctcentral.com/cgi-bin/w3com/start?ctcentral+FrontPage Forum: http://www.ctcentral.com/ Author: Anthony Griego PASTORE JAB AT TEAM UNFOUNDED Letter to the Editor I would like to respond to the article written by former Police Chief Nicholas Pastore. His article was based on common misinformation about what emergency services teams do. After almost 32 years of service with the New Haven Police Department, I retired recently, so I speak with personal knowledge. Emergency services teams are specifically equipped and trained to deal with high-risk situations. Officers are trained to deal with barricaded subjects, with or without hostages, and terrorist situations. And, yes, if information was available that a drug house had heavy weapons, a team could be used to enter. Unfortunately most times, drug enforcement officers will put on a protective vest and enter a high-risk situation without any emergency services training. Pastore made one statement that is very misleading and inflammatory - "communities throughout the country - not just big cities, but small cities - have formed SWAT teams, cops dressed up as soldiers to bust down doors and fly into housing projects in search of drugs." First, before cops fly anywhere, they must convince a judge that drugs are on the property. Why the reference to housing projects? Who would Pastore send into Columbine High? A beat cop would be ill prepared to deal with what took place there. Emergency services units do have a purpose and most teams pride themselves on the fact that in most operations they make the apprehension without any injuries. Pastore goes on to say that we should call off the drug war. He needs to ask the communities that suffer from the drug trade if we should call off the war. I don't like the term "drug war," because I see it as a cancer. A cancer that eats into neighborhoods and destroys them. I worked with a dedicated group of community people on the Newhallville Management Team to help rid their neighborhood of this cancer. A community can start to heal only when there is a strong partnership between the community and its police officers. Pastore should be commended for bringing community policing to New Haven and for his work with Dr.Ronald Cohen of the Yale Child Study Center in establishing the Child Development-Community Policing Program. Unfortunately, Pastore, unlike his predecessor, William Farrell, never recognized the need for a well trained, well equipped emergency services team. Pastore could have helped the community more, but in my opinion he disliked one half of the partnership and in his writings it is apparent to me which half that is. Anthony Griego Hamden - --- MAP posted-by: Derek Rea