Rev. James Manship’s Opinion On Petition Drive to Pardon EH Cops

EAST HAVEN, CT - The priest who was at the center of a case in which four East Haven cops went to prison for profiling Latinos said he has a message for the cops who are seeking a pardon from President Donald Trump.

“Anybody has a right to petition the president,” said Rev. James Manship. “But you don’t have the right to change the narrative.”

David Cari and Dennis Spaulding were each convicted of civil rights abuses and obstruction of justice charges in October 2013, while two others, former Sgt. John Miller and former Officer Jason Zullo, pleaded guilty to lesser, unrelated charges.

Zullo was sentenced to two years in prison, Cari to 30 months and Spaulding to five years. They were arrested in the early morning hours of Jan. 24, 2012, on an indictment charging that the four "conspired to injure, oppress, threaten and intimidate various members of the East Haven community in violation of their Constitutional rights."

A petition asking Trump to pardon the officers has been signed by more than 1,700 people.

Manship, who was a New Haven priest in 2009 when the incident happened is now leading a church in Meriden. He said he has seen stories about the petition on the Patch website.

“I’ll repeat,” Manship said, “you can’t change the narrative. I’ll also remind you that a jury of their peers convicted them on all 20 counts of which they were charged,” said Manship.

The petition which is on the website, change.org says: "The 4 police officers are still seeking justice.

"Pardon and commutation paperwork has been submitted to the Trump administration. We are looking for help and support to get these decorated police officers pardoned from their politically motived prosecution and to give them a fresh start on life.

"Their families deserve it, their community deserves it and most of all they deserve it for the years of decorated service they provided to the Town of East Haven, Connecticut. Please sign this petition and help us ask President Donald Trump to pardon these officers."

The cops were arrested in the early morning hours of Jan. 24, 2012, on an indictment charging that the four "conspired to injure, oppress, threaten and intimidate various members of the East Haven community in violation of their Constitutional rights."

The arrests were sparked by a DOJ investigation of the East Haven police, which began in 2009.

Prosecutors filed the obstruction of justice charge largely in light of the Feb. 19, 2009, arrest of St. Rose Lima Rev. Manship. The New Haven priest was arrested after he filmed Cari and Spaulding ordering employees at an East Haven Latino-owned general store to remove nearly 80 license plates that had been screwed in to the back wall.

Following the arrests and prison sentences, the town's police department fell under Department of Justice jurisdiction and was under that watch for more than four years. That watch was lifted late last year.

The DOJ agreement with the town, after the arrests, called for more extensive training for officers, including 32 hours of annual training for all officers.

It also ordered "bias-free policing," stating that the "EHPD shall deliver police services that are equitable, respectful, and free of unlawful bias, in a manner that promotes broad community engagement and confidence in the Department.

And more interaction between the police and the community has helped heal wounds. The agreement requires monthly meetings with community groups so the police are hearing directly from the community.
The department also initiated the purchase of body cameras for officers.

Manship said one thing that bothers him, still, is that “the East Haven police department has not gotten the credit it deserved for what they’ve done and accomplished since the arrests happened. It is a completely different department today than what it was.”

“Police Chief (Ed) Lennon deserves a lot of credit for that. The men and women of that department are committed now to constitutional policing.”

Manship said the department’s efforts should have been better recognized and honored. Instead, he said, “they were pretty much put off to the side and ignored.”