By Brian McCready
New Haven Register
MILFORD, Conn. — Police Chief Keith Mello said his first five years at the helm have felt like 15.
Not that Mello, 50, is complaining. He loves his job, his employees and the Milford community he helps safeguard.
“It’s certainly a 24-hour-a-day job, and I wouldn’t want it any other way,” Mello said.
That dedication is on display by his nightstand. Mello sleeps with a notebook by his bedside to jot down ideas in the middle of the night to improve the department.
“When I stop doing that, then it’s time to move on,” Mello said.
Mello, who has been with the Milford Police Department for 28 years, was recently given two awards -- the Milford Bar Association’s Liberty Bell Award, and he was named 2009 “Distinguished Chief” by the Police Commissioners Association of Connecticut.
Mello said the recognition belongs to the 109-member department.
“I accept the awards on their behalf,” Mello said. “I see all these awards as an affirmation that our Police Department is moving in the right direction.”
Mello’s time as chief has included some turbulent times. The police union’s former president, Jeffrey Matchett, said morale was at an “all time low” before Mello’s promotion.
For the first 18 months, Mello enjoyed the calm, but that came to a halt Oct. 9, 2006, when Nicholas G. Brown, 24, of Bridgeport died of a cocaine overdose while in police custody.
It was the circumstances surrounding Brown’s death, which attracted national attention, that tested Mello. Brown died more than five hours after he was shocked three times with a Taser stun gun and swallowed something -- possibly the cocaine that killed him - - while being arrested.
An internal affairs investigation showed police noticed Brown was hallucinating almost 45 minutes before paramedics were called, but an officer told his supervisor an ambulance wasn’t necessary.
A fire and civilian police dispatcher were fired for jokes they made during the emergency call. One dispatcher joked “maybe he (Brown) should have double-bagged it or something,” referring to the suspected drugs he swallowed, while another dispatcher described Brown’s condition as “doing the funky chicken,” according to 911 transcripts.
Mello suspended five police officers for lapses in judgment and violations of police procedures. Brown’s family has filed a wrongful- death lawsuit against the city, and Mello said he could not comment specifically on the case.
“I firmly believe our officers are not responsible for his death,” Mello said last week. “He was responsible for his own death, but at the same time I had an obligation to take a critical look at our policies to see if any police violations occurred. I took what I believed was the necessary action.
“I believe strongly in transparency,” the chief said. “You have to look people in the eye and tell what you know. This is a public agency. There are no secrets unless it’s an ongoing criminal investigation. If and when we make mistakes we have to learn from them. Those mistakes are my responsibility.”
Since Brown’s death, Mello and the department have been praised for their police work and new initiatives.
“Chief Mello is an outstanding police chief,” said Mayor James L. Richetelli Jr. “He’s a passionate public servant and has continued the fine tradition of the Milford Police Department and rekindled morale and is looked throughout the state as a leader amongst police chiefs.”
After a couple of melees involving youths at the Westfield Connecticut Post mall, Mello spearheaded the creation of a police substation there. It is paid for by Westfield, and since its creation in 2007 there have not been any reports of large disturbances at the mall.
Mello created the Citizens Police Academy in an effort to “tear down these brick walls and show people what is going on in here.” He said it was great to have civilians gain a bird’s-eye view of what is going on in the department.
One of Mello’s favorite projects was creating the Community Operational Policing Substations (COPS), a large vehicle that acts as a mobile police station. The unit includes communication equipment, video cameras and meeting space. The mobile command unit allows officers to interact with the community and act as a deterrent against crime, Mello said.
Mello said the vehicle was purchased because of several disturbances at Wildemere and Walnut beaches.
“We go into areas that have some problems,” Mello said. “We solve them and move on.”
Mello has created a 4 p.m.-to-midnight detective bureau, and a 3- to-11 p.m. traffic division to address residents’ concerns. Mello said he is proud each year he has returned money from the police budget to the taxpayers.
Since the Brown ordeal, Mello said the department was progressing smoothly. That was until the most recent budget process. The Democrat-controlled Board of Aldermen voted to eliminate one cop position, saving $52,000, in an effort to keep taxes down, members said. Two additional positions may be left vacant if the union does not agree to a wage freeze next year.
Mello said the cuts are “disturbing,” and he felt like a “failure” because he could not keep “politics out of the department.”
“This budget year was the most challenging in recent memory, forcing cuts in every department,” said Democratic Town Chairman Richard Smith. “No one was spared. Fortunately the department still has two openings and under Chief Mello’s leadership the city of Milford continues to be one of the safest cities in the country to live.”
Mello said one of his proudest accomplishments was getting the city to add two additional cops over the past two years, and he vows to add two additional officers.
Over the last nine years, the number of calls for service have increased by 42 percent. Criminal arrests have increased as there has been considerable real-estate growth, especially on Route 1, and there are pockets of crime in neighborhoods, he said.
He said it’s unfortunate to lose a position, especially as calls for service increase. Mello said that wherever he travels residents talk about the need for more officers.
“I will always manage with the resources that the people of Milford want us to have, but you can’t buy $100 worth of groceries with just $50 in your pocket,” Mello said. “That goes beyond the band of creativity.”
Mello was selected as chief among four internal candidates. Matchett said the officers wanted Mello as chief because “we knew it was going to be a boost in morale.” Matchett said morale was low because the former leadership lacked vision, and did not recognize or respect the officers. He said officers knew Mello was a “progressive, forward-thinking leader.”
Looking back, Matchett said Mello has “lived up to or exceeded every expectation that we had five years ago.”
“When I was union president, we had a professional working relationship that labor and management had not experienced before. I believe that same relation continues today,” Matchett said.
Mello said he understands it’s his job to maintain and create a healthy and productive environment that encourages strong performance.
“The officers won’t follow someone that they do not respect and they won’t respect someone who doesn’t care about them,” Mello said. “I care for all of my employees who work for me even those I’ve had to discipline.”
Mello confirmed that he was approached within the past year by a large Connecticut city to interview for a similar position, but he declined.
“I love this department and this community. I love the people here,” Mello said.
He was promoted to sergeant in 1988, served on the Statewide Narcotics Task Force as an undercover officer for 3 1/2 years, and rose through the ranks to lieutenant in 1992 and captain in 1993.
But he said he doesn’t believe a chief should stay too long, and when he moves on there will be numerous internal candidates available to assume his duties.
“When I feel I can no longer be effective or that my ideas are becoming stale then its time to move over and make way for some of the rising stars in this police department,” Mello said.
Copyright 2009 ProQuest Information and Learning