Hartford JAG 2023

The Hartford Police Department is requesting $192,481 in JAG assistance to complement locally funded officer overtime to address gun related violence. Hartford has an overall population of 120,686 residents and it consists of 17 separate neighborhoods that represent a diverse array of law enforcement challenges for the Hartford Police Department (Department). In a year-to-date comparison from the previous year, the City of Hartford is currently experiencing a slight reduction in gun violence. Around this time in 2022, the year-to-date homicides by firearm were at 21. The year-to-date homicides by firearm for the current year are at 20. This is a 9.09% increase in homicides by firearm with a projection to decrease by the end of 2023. Non-fatal shootings are slightly lower than around this time in 2022 and are on course to being lower than the numbers we had in 2021 and 2022. The Department currently has 374 sworn officers (out of 472 budgeted positions) patrolling the streets, engaging in detective work, and performing a host of law enforcement related activities. The Department is currently experiencing a high level of attrition due to resignations; recruitment and hiring has not been able to keep up with this attrition. So far this year, the department has lost 32 officers to attrition, and this number is significantly higher than any year in the past ten years. Due to these high levels of attrition, the Department is required to fill these vacant positions with overtime to meet staffing minimums. This is necessary to fight crime and maintain a high level of service for the community. The main goal of this program is to increase community safety and security by hiring officers on overtime to address the City’s increasing levels of gun violence.