HARTFORD, Conn. (AP) – New Haven Police Chief Dean Esserman has confounded both supporters and critics over the years with dueling good cop-bad cop personalities.
He has gained attention and respect nationally for putting in place community policing programs in Connecticut and Rhode Island, accomplishments that got him invited to the White House this month for a discussion with the president and others about easing tensions between law enforcement and minority communities. He also is known for meeting with crime victims’ families.
Then there’s the Esserman who has gotten in trouble for angry public outbursts, the latest coming this month at a New Haven restaurant where he reportedly was upset about the service and berated a waitress, leading people sitting near him to request other tables.
Esserman agreed to take three weeks of paid leave, announced Monday, and potentially faces more serious discipline. Mayor Toni Harp warned him two years ago when she reprimanded him for a confrontation with an usher at the Yale Bowl.
A Yale professor who witnessed the episode told city police commissioners that when the usher asked Esserman for his ticket to the Yale-Army football game, Esserman threatened to cancel the game, told the usher he didn’t need tickets because he was the police chief, verbally abused the usher and demanded a stadium supervisor remove the usher.