A glimpse of the future. The logistical demands of justice continue to be thwarted by COVID-19. Civil and criminal trials have been suspended in the District of Connecticut until further order:

GENERAL ORDER

IN RE:
COURT OPERATIONS UNDER THE EXIGENT CIRCUMSTANCES CREATED BY COVID-19 

WHEREAS, the President of the United States has declared a national emergency, and the Governor of the State of Connecticut has declared a public health emergency throughout the State; 
WHEREAS, the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention has advised people to take precautions in light of the COVID-19 virus (coronavirus) outbreak, and has noted that the best way to prevent illness is to avoid being exposed to the virus, through, among other means, social distancing; 
AND
WHEREAS, the District Court continues to review its operations to identify measures that will help slow the spread of the virus by minimizing contact between persons, while at the same time preserving its core mission of serving the public through the fair and impartial administration of justice; 

IT IS HEREBY ORDERED, effective immediately, that:

(1)All civil and criminal jury trials (and re lated jury selections) scheduled to commence on or before September 1, 2020, before any district or magistrate judge in any courthouse in the District of Connecticut shall be continued pending further order of the Court; and

(2)With regard to criminal trials, due to: the public health risks associated with summoning groups of prospective jurors who would be required to sit in close proximity to each other during jury selection and, if selected, during trial and deliberations; the Court’s reduced ability to obtain an adequate spectrum of prospective jurors due to the publics perceptions of the risks associated with jury service; and the effect of the above public health recommendations on the availability of counsel and Court staff to be present in the courtroom; the time period of the continuances implemented by paragraph 1 of this General Order will be excluded under the Speedy Trial Act. The Court specifically finds that the ends of justice served by ordering the continuances outweigh the best interests of the public and each defendant in a speedy trial, pursuant to 18 U.S.C. Section 3161(h)(7)(A).

SO ORDERED:

Dated: May 19, 2020
Bridgeport, CT

Stefan R. Underhill
Chief United States District Judge

It usually starts by asking for a driver’s license and registration. Not today on I-95 as Connecticut State Trooper Matthew Spina goes on a frightening rant after pulling over a driver who appears to have made an obscene gesture at Spina, who responded with an extended stream of abuse.

Spina, who announces between obscenities that he has 14 months before retirement, appears not to have noticed the camera in the driver’s car. Nor is the trooper wearing gloves and a mask.

Supervisors may ask the voluble Spina to cite the regulation that allows dumping marijuana by the side of the road during a traffic stop.

The global pandemic roiled the upper ranks of the state’s Department of Public Health (DPH) was more extensive than previously known as the toll the crisis took at state-regulated nursing homes grew at a staggering pace.

On March 6th, Susan Roman, the department’s deputy commissioner in charge of the state’s response to the approaching disaster, quit while alleging she had been the target of racial discrimination. Roman left the day she resigned.

Five weeks later, on April 13th, DPH Director of Communications and Government Relations Av Harris submitted his resignation. Harris notified Commissioner Renee D. Coleman-Mitchell, who was canned by Governor Ned Lamont last week, that effective May 7th he was resigning his position. “I will be starting a a new professional opportunity in my home state of Massachusetts,” Harris wrote.

By April 13th, state officials estimated there had been 602 COVID-19-associated deaths, while 1760 patients were hospitalized with the unique coronavirus. State officials were expecting the pandemic to peak in Connecticut two weeks later. Coleman-Mitchell and her staff had been sidelined in the Lamont administration’s public response to the virus, a bewildering development as public health officials stepped into the spotlight to inform and reassure cities, states, and the nation.

On April 17th, Harris “upon further reflection” rescinded his resignation, pledging that he was “fully committed to continuing to serve as part of the team….” Harris said Monday that the new job “did not end up working out. So I rescinded my notice and I am happy to stay in my role at DPH.”

Harris added in a subsequent message, “We are doing important work and I want to continue being part of the response to the worst pandemic any of us have seen in our lifetime.” Harris has done stints with secretaries of state Susan Bysiewicz and Denise Merrill, a short gig with former state treasurer Denise Nappier, and a tour of duty with Bridgeport Mayor Joseph Ganim, who challenged Lamont in the 2018 Democratic primary for governor.

The Hartford Courant’s Dave Altimari reported in a chilling Sunday story that a survey of 350 DPH employees conducted in January and February found widespread discontent and alarm at DPH’s leadership. Lamont’s actions during the last two months have confirmed the rank-and-file’s frustrating experience at DPH.

The department will require more than a new commissioner when Lamont steadies his own erratic response to reopening Connecticut’s economy.

Governor Ned Lamont has agreed to an extraordinary restriction in the state’s ability to communicate with the public during the public health crisis. Secrecy in conducting the people’s business at this critical hour is becoming a dangerous practice in the Lamont administration.

The administration’s growing aversion to openness is written into the state’s contract with Boston Consultant Group (BCG), the company Connecticut and neighboring states will be paying millions for suggestions on reopening the state’s economy. The contract states, in part, “No Party will make any public announcement or press release regarding the Engagement or Services performed without the prior written consent of the other Party, provided, however, BCG has the right to refer to State as a client of BCG for promotional purposes with with the written consent of the State.” This is an extraordinary voluntary restriction on Lamont’s ability to communicate with the public during a time when he is wielding unprecedented powers under a declaration of a state emergency.

The state will pay BCG as much as $140,000 a week “for a ‘medium team’ of four consultants,” according to CTnewsjunkie.com.

BCG will also assist the secretive Reopen Advisory Committee. Lamont Yale classmate and the committee’s co-chair, Indra Nooyi, was the subject of an obsequious profile for Forbes by BCG senior partner and managing director Grant Freeland. Prepare to cringe as you decide which is more sugary, the profile or the sugar-laden drinks Nooyi made a fortune peddling as the head of PepsiCo.

Jonathan Riddle heads to the virtual 4th Congressional District Republican nominating convention as a frontrunner with a hefty campaign debt before the first delegate vote is cast. Federal Election Commission reports reveal Riddle owes more than $62,000 to campaign consultants.

On March 31st, Riddle had $8,697.63 in cash. Riddle’s campaign owed five figure debts to Robert Moss and Peter Riddle, both of Stamford, and the luckless Republican campaign consulting firm Praetorian Strategy Group.

The FEC notified Riddle this week he has failed to file a mandatory pre-convention report

They tried to warn him. He could not hear them over his cackling. The rest requires no explanation. Nevertheless, Wethersfield Republican town council member Brooks Parker may want to ponder offering one.

UPDATE:  Parker resigned from the Wethersfield town council Thursday after offering what Daily Ructions, which first reported the story, understands was a grudging apology offered at a meeting of fellow party members Wednesday.

Renee Coleman-Mitchell will no longer serve as Commissioner of the Department of Public Health (DPH), Governor Ned Lamont announced Tuesday morning. The absence of DPH at the highest levels of state government in dealing with the coronavirus pandemic has been an open wound for the Lamont administration for months.

Nursing homes, which are regulated by DPH, have seen thousands of patient deaths as DPH appeared to dither at formulating an effective response.

Department of Social Services Commissioner Deidre Gilford will serves as acting commissioner of DPH.

Pay no attention to state Senator Saud Anwar (D-South Windsor) and it may save your life or someone else’s. Despite what you see in the above-photo, it’s vital to wear a mask, especially if you are a healthcare worker or in or near a healthcare facility.

Follow Governor Ned Lamont’s order on wearing masks, even if a doctor serving in the Senate does not. You’re worried about suppressing the virus and staying healthy. Wear a mask. The Mike Pence of Connecticut wants a full-face photo in the state’s largest newspaper. It’s not worth it. It’s only a picture. Bending the curve is far more important than barefaced vanity.

Anwar has been among a group of Senate Democrats, Daily Ructions has learned, agitating to push Lamont to delay starting to reopen Connecticut’s staggering economy. The reopening of the economy without overwhelming our healthcare system will not work if we do not wear masks. That is particularly true of doctors and state officials.

West Hartford council member Mary Fay will be chosen tonight as the Republican nominee for Congress from the state’s 1st District. Fay was elected to the town council last year. In 2018, she unsuccessfully sought a seat in the state’s House of Representatives

Fay made her announcement Thursday on Facebook. She will face incumbent Democrat John Larson, who was first elected to the seat in 1998.

Fay made news earlier this year when she was laid-off as executive director of the struggling  Connecticut State Retirement Authority. She did not leave the office quietly.

Republican Ryan Meehan dropped out of the race for his party’s Fifth Congressional District nomination. Meehan’s withdrawal leaves retired federal prosecutor David X. Sullivan as the only candidate in a field that last month included four hopefuls.

Republican delegates will gather via a virtual convention next week to make their endorsement. Sullivan will face first term incumbent Democrat Jahana Hayes, who won landslide primary and general election victories two years ago.