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Gary K. Tyler
Chief of Police

South Windsor Police Services
151 Sand Hill Road
South Windsor, Ct  06074
(860)644-2551

2006-2007 Annual Report
South Windsor Police Services was established in 1968 under the authority of Chapter 6, Section 601 of the Town Charter by Town Ordinance 62-31.  In accordance with the Town Charter, the police department shall be responsible for the preservation of the public peace, prevention of crime, apprehension of criminals, regulation of traffic, protection of rights of persons and property and enforcement of the laws of the state and the ordinances of the Town and all rules and regulations made in accordance therewith. All members of the Police Department shall have the same powers and duties with respect to the service of criminal process and enforcement of criminal laws as are vested in police officers by the general statutes. 

During the 2006-2007 fiscal year, the South Windsor Police Department responded to 31,685 calls for service.  These calls included criminal complaints and investigations; traffic crashes; general services, such as medical assists, civil matters, traffic problems, animal problems; and other public service activities.  The chart below shows a breakdown of the past five years’ activity.  South Windsor Police Services remains the primary first responder to all medical emergencies. 

During the month of July 2006, the community mourned the death of former police chief William R. Ryan.  Chief Ryan served the town from 1963 until his retirement in January 1987.  Chief Ryan graduated from Hartford’s Buckeley High School in 1947.  He served in the U.S. Army from 1950-1952 as a military policeman.  Prior to beginning his career in South Windsor he worked as a water company meter reader, a carpenter, a security guard and as manager for Kilty’s Esso in East Hartford.

Chief Ryan worked his way through the ranks serving as a patrol officer, sergeant, lieutenant, captain and assistant chief, before accepting the position of Chief of Police in 1980. Chief Ryan was 77 years old when he died at his home in Morehead City, North Carolina.  Chief Ryan is survived by his wife, three children and five grandchildren.  Abbe Road Extension, a road that marks the eastern boarder of Nevers Road Park, was renamed Chief Ryan Way in early 2007 and dedicated to the memory and service of Chief Ryan.

During the year we welcomed Officers Brian Fantry, Christina Mazzaccoli, Daniel Cain and Mark Halibozek to the department.  All four trained at the Connecticut Police Academy for twenty weeks before entering the department’s sixteen week field training program. 

Community Service Officer Brian Kelley was also hired to a full-time position during the year.  Community service officers or CSOs as they are known are primarily responsible for animal control activities but also assist police officers with non-hazardous duties. 

The department’s authorized number of sworn police officers remains at forty-three.  The officers hired during the year were hired to fill vacancies created during the previous year. 

South Windsor Police Services entered into an agreement with the Connecticut Humane Society for the sheltering of South Windsor’s stray dogs.  For the past ten years, South Windsor has leased space from the Town of Vernon at their animal control facility for the housing of our stray dogs.  However, the space at that facility had been decreasing over the past few years and South Windsor had been exploring other regional options for an animal control shelter.   

Chief Tyler had worked closely with the Humane Society for several years in working toward a regional solution.  The Humane Society suggested we use their facility in Newington to shelter our animals.  An agreement was reached and South Windsor animal control officers have been housing dogs at the shelter since August 2006.  The Humane Society has proposed building a regional shelter in South Windsor to provide services to the community as well as to neighboring communities. 

The police department also started exploring locations for a bark-park; a recreational area for dogs.  Several sites were studied before settling on a parcel in Nevers Road Park at the northern end of Chief Ryan Way.   The park will include free-run areas for large and small dogs and is expected to open in the fall of 2007.

Sergeant Paul Taft, a member of the department for twenty-six years, retired in January 2007.  Sergeant Taft served as a patrol officer, detective, patrol supervisor, special enforcement unit supervisor and manager of the criminal investigations unit. 

Other personnel actions during the year included the promotion of Rick Watrous to the rank of sergeant and the promotion of Rich Bond to the rank of lieutenant. 

During the year the citizen police academy known as PACT, Police and Community Together, celebrated its tenth year.  Nearly 400 people have graduated from the class.  The academy is conducted in the spring and fall each year.  Classes are held one night a week for twelve weeks.  Students are introduced to basic police operations, criminal investigation, use of force, canine operations, court procedures and constitutional law. 

The following is a list of other activities that the agency participated in;

·        School Safety – Commander Matthew Reed launched the South Windsor Safe School Initiative.  This program provides crime risk assessment services to South Windsor’s schools.  Commander Reed continues to work closely with school department staff in enhancing the physical security of the school facilities.  The program also mandates patrol officers to conduct directed patrols of all school buildings during the school day to ensure compliance with school security standards and maintain a familiarity with school facilities and grounds.

·        Training – South Windsor police continue to take advantage of numerous training opportunities.   In addition to their other mandated training, every member of the department attended a day of training at the Stone’s Ranch military training site in Niantic, CT.  Officers were given the opportunity to participate in the military confidence course and then a rappelling exercise.   The theme of this training was “strength, confidence and endurance.”

 South Windsor Police Services is a customer-driven, service-oriented organization.  Our Agency devotes significant resources and efforts to recruit, select, and train highly qualified men and women.  Our personnel are among the best in the state.  We will continue to strive for the most professional standards of conduct and performance.  We shall not forget that our primary mission is to provide service to the community.
Law enforcement is everybody’s business.

Gary K. Tyler
Chief of Police