FOIC to decide on battle between Bridgeport and CHRO

According to an FOIC proposed final decision , the state’s Commission on Human Rights and Opportunities (CHRO) will likely be ordered to release files relating to a complaint that the CHRO filed against the city, accusing the Bridgeport Police Department of racially profiling drivers.

The CHRO complaint follows a 2018 flagging of the Bridgeport Police Department by the Racial Profiling Prohibition Project (CTRP3) for having an above-average racial disparity in traffic stops and violations. BPD was the only municipal department in the state to have been flagged by CTRP3 that year. The decision to file the complaint appears to have been made in executive session at a CHRO meeting held on June 9, 2022.

The City of Bridgeport initially filed a FOIA request with the CHRO on Aug. 16, 2023, which the CHRO acknowledged on Aug. 21. The CHRO then responded on Aug. 25, saying the “request is currently being reviewed and will be processed once the information you’ve requested [has] been compiled. The City proceeded to file a FOIC complaint on Sept. 13, alleging that the CHRO had violated FOIA by not promptly releasing the files. Per the ruling, the FOIC asserted that the records requested were public records that fell under the purview of FOIA.

The complaint requested that the CHRO release all documents and written communications surrounding its decision to file the complaint, including communications provided to or considered by the CHRO during the June 9, 2022 meeting. It requested all documents and written communications between CHRO members and employees relating to the investigation of the complaint, including those that had not already been sent over to the City or its attorneys, as well as any that refer to CTRP3’s ‘Traffic Stop Analysis & Findings, 2019.’

It also requested any documents used as research done in preparation for the complaint and any communications or documents regarding the investigation of the complaint not already sent to the City or its attorney. Furthermore, it requested the complete investigation file of the CHRO’s case against the City, excluding privileged and attorney work documents, all statements of witnesses, parties, and former parties taken during the course of the CHRO’s investigation, and audio recordings and transcripts of witness statements and interviews.

On Jan 18, 2024, the CHRO filed a petition for relief, asserting that the complaint ought to be dismissed because the FOIC did not have jurisdiction to oversee a complaint filed by a city instead of a person. In an April 19 hearing, the FOIC’s hearing officer refused to dismiss the case on such grounds, instead issuing an order to substitute the City as the case’s complainant for its attorney, Paul Testa. The CHRO then attempted to claim that Testa lacked standing to file a complaint, which the commission subsequently ruled against.

The CHRO successfully argued against the applicability of some of the requested documentation, but ultimately, the proposed final decision recommends that all files not covered by client-attorney privilege be disclosed to the City within 60 days of the final decision. The final decision will be made at 2 p.m. on Wednesday, Aug. 28.

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