If Ansonia offered cash rewards to tipsters on crimes, would it bolster the police department’s investigations or create a mess?
Ansonia aldermen debated those points and several others Tuesday as they discussed a proposal to offer cash rewards for information leading to arrests and convictions in two recent murders and a rash of vandalism.
John Marini, the lone Republican on the Board of Aldermen, proposed offering three cash rewards for the three separate crimes.
Other Aldermen weren’t sure the proposal would work.
“Quite frankly, if somebody offered a $2,000 reward for one of my children being murdered, I would have a problem with that,” said First Ward Alderman Edward Adamowski. “It’s insulting to me.”
The board held an open debate among members to air its concerns and other ideas. Board of Alderman President Stephen Blume said he would forward the transcript to the Board of Police Commissioners as that board reviews the proposal this month.
Aldermen raised the following concerns:
- Do rewards actually prompt more, and accurate, tips?
- Would these rewards prompt a slew of requests for all crimes?
- How do you set a price on someone’s life?
- How do you decide which crimes to reward information about?
- Is a reward undermining the work that the police department is already doing?
Other ideas arose from the debate, such as helping families host fundraisers to provide their own rewards, and working with a group like CrimeStoppers to offer rewards and accept tips.
Click play on the video above to see a sampling of the points made.
Police Chief Kevin Hale said at the meeting he would have to research whether rewards have worked in other communities. Ansonia hasn’t seen many private rewards offered before, Hale said.
Marini countered some of the points by saying that the process could only help — and that rewards would only be paid out if there is an arrest and conviction.
“There is a value put on a life if you do nothing. That is zero dollars,” Marini said. “It is possible that a small reward may be all it takes.”
