Gov. Ned Lamont has appointed Deirdre M. Daly, an attorney with Stamford-based Finn Dixon and Herling LLP and a former U.S. Attorney for the District of Connecticut, to lead an investigation into the scandal involving a massive level of falsified traffic stop tickets generated by the Connecticut State Police.
Daly”™s appointment follows a report by state auditors that could not corroborate 25,966 stops submitted to the racial profiling database. The report questioned if the troopers falsified these records between 2014 and 2021 to intentionally downplay the number of Black and Hispanic motorists being ticketed while giving an inflated reflection of the number of White motorists who were cited on the road.
Daly will lead an investigative team to interview troopers, constables and others who may have relevant information. The investigation is expected to take between three to six months to complete, although it might take longer if the troopers refuse to cooperate with Daly and her team.
“I have ordered a comprehensive and independent investigation of possible misconduct by the Connecticut State Police based on the information brought to light by the Connecticut Racial Profiling Prohibition Project,” said Lamont. “I have great faith in the overwhelming majority of our troopers, and to protect public confidence in them we must get to the bottom of this and learn how it happened, why it happened, and how to prevent it from ever happening again. I am glad that someone with Deirdre Daly”™s experience and credibility has agreed to undertake this important work.”
