NEW LONDON’S OVERSIGHT COMMITTEE ALLEGES CITY VIOLATES FOIA, ERASES WHISTLEBLOWER WEBSITES, IGNORES REQUESTS FOR PUBLIC RECORDS

New London’s Oversight Committee Alleges City Violates FOIA, Erases Whistleblower Websites, Ignores Requests for Public Records Jonathan Brand April 5, 2023 Originally published at: https://newlondonvoice.com/new-londons-public-oversight-committee-accuses-government-of-violating-foia-law/ is that site still there? If this comes up in search the City of New London Has Likely Hacked our resident-built site a third time. 10:49 pm 1 a glaring neon sign obscuring the facade of NL's local City Hall, "Keep Out!" Yet residents beg to differ, we won't be silenced by city hackers again, we will not be erased. Thanks to site security updates, "We the residents of New London are back online and will not be hacked or silenced again. Mayor M. Passero of New London CT April 5th, 2023, NEW LONDON: 27 members of New London’s Public Oversight Committee alleged that the city government had violated the state’s Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) by refusing to respond to their public document requests and formal announcements. The committee claimed that the city officials were disregarding their responsibility to taxpayers and breaking CT STATE law by failing to respond to resident requests to provide public records. Basic Right to Public Records Falls Into Question Two former versions of this whistleblower website were hacked by the City because each contained the requests for public records that were ignored from 2015 through the present. It is clear enough based on web server logs, that City officials hired professional hacking firms or individuals to illicitly take down "newlondontimes.com" & "newlondonpolice.org" as soon as the site showed up atop Google's page one of search results for commonly run searches on the City. Both hacked domains hosted unedited resident complaints that could not be deleted or buried by NLPD employees, and both were linked to by New London residents on the City's Police Department page on FB. All such resident FB accounts have since been banned by police. This is real. This is a problem that is lately demonstrated from all sides. E.g. Read this email our site admins sent to a "non existent" email address at New London's web server: It never bounced back or returned any error thanks to the city's unexplainable enabling of the "Catch-all" setting, this will make sense when you read the above link for more information. (Note this site author's FB account was banned from posting or reading the NLPD Facebook Page.) ...Unbeknownst to NL officials both sites were being monitored & backed up at normal intervals by Web3's WayBack Machine NL was caught in the act of using our tax dollars to erase or silence some rather damning evidence of corruption in the City including, copies of unreturned FOIA requests and a simple platform we offered as a secure and alternate hub for resident police complaints. This is a real example, like it or not, of where our tax dollars go when we speak out about the City's leadership, on the specific police reforms we require and so on. It's an attack on resident's requests for improvement(s) and by hacking two such websites down by brute force, one could argue the presence of a glaring neon sign obscuring the facade of NL's local City Hall, "Keep Out!" Yet residents beg to differ, we won't be silenced by city hackers again, we will not be erased. Thanks to site security updates, "We the residents of New London are back online and will not be hacked or silenced again. Expect us." In March and April 2023 New London's Mayor Passero and GA10 Part B Court's, Sean Kelly, Esq. failed to observe the law when each left multiple, written "FOIA" requests unanswered. The result makes it impossible to ignore the faulty implication that New London is attempting to operate "secret municipal government" and while the idea may be laughable to some, it cannot be dismissed without access to all public records kept by the City of New London's public servants. Does one need to place the word servants in quotation marks? The committee's claims sparked public outrage as citizens expressed their concern over the government's refusal to provide them access to public documents. This blatant disregard for the law raised questions about the legitimacy of the government's actions. Furthermore, it highlighted how an elected government should be transparent and accountable to the public, as per its responsibilities. Many, including CT Attorney, Ryan Ziolkowski Esq., expressed their desire to understand the full scope of the situation and the need for a broader investigation. The committee called on the state government to open an investigation into the matter and ensure full compliance with the FOIA law. The requests, published at multiple website domains for safe keeping, are being legally submitted to the Mayor's Office under the State of Connecticut's "Freedom of information Act," commonly called, FOIA law, which allows the public to obtain any public record(s) from their State or Municipal government by submitting a FOIA request. Despite the group's efforts to have their authority recognized, city leaders have remained silent. To ensure that the committee is granted the respect and authority it deserves, residents of New London can take several actions. First, the committee should meet with Mayor Passero and other city officials to discuss the concerns of the community and the need for the city to recognize and accept the committee as a governing body. They can also leverage the support of the local population and seek assistance from local and state representatives who can put pressure on the city government to comply with the committee's requests. Furthermore, the committee can use various media outlets to raise awareness of the issue and create social media channels to reach the public directly. The oversight committee can also file an official complaint with the state Attorney General's office, providing evidence of the city officials' violation of FOIA laws. They may also consider filing a civil lawsuit against the City of New London to compel compliance with the committee's legitimate requests. Public protests and demonstrations can also be organized to raise awareness and demand recognition of the committee's authority. City council members have not yet replied to The Day’s requests for comment, nor is it clear why the public records requested by the committee are being ignored. This failure to provide requested information violates the public’s right to access information related to their government. Moreover, the committee is calling for the resignation of Police Chief Brian Wright, who has been accused of police misconduct, false arrest, and the use of excessive force against minorities. To pressure Chief Wright to resign, the committee has proposed launching a petition and social media campaign, developing an online resource to document complaints about police brutality, and meeting with city leaders to discuss their demands. By raising awareness and collecting evidence, the committee hopes to create a more transparent relationship between the police department and the community. Sharing Helps Facebook For Dogs 0 Elon's Future World 0 CopyAll 0 Category : Mayor Mayor Passero Tags : attorney ryan ziokowski Attorney Sean Kelly City of New London GA10 Mayor Passero new london Previous HOME Next CT Attorney, Ryan D Ziolkowski COMMENT (1)ON “NEW LONDON’S OVERSIGHT COMMITTEE ALLEGES CITY VIOLATES FOIA, ERASES WHISTLEBLOWER WEBSITES, IGNORES REQUESTS FOR PUBLIC RECORDS” alt Perry Anderson says: April 9, 2023 at 10:23 pm Edit The Maypr out to pay attention to our group as we carry the full weight and authority as coming from and representing the only governing body that had the money and the authority to put him in office as our servant. Is he still seeking another term as Mayor? Perhaps he’s done with that role. Reply Leave a Reply Logout Logged in as Jonathan Brand. Edit your profile. Log out? Required fields are marked * Comment *