Police Get to Know Community Through ‘Coffee with a Cop'

Wethersfield police and state police are making an effort to get to know community members through an initiative called “Coffee with a Cop.”

Thursday was the first one and it was held at Chip’s Family Restaurant in Wethersfield.

It was an opportunity for police to talk with the public in a comfortable setting outside of a traffic stop or emergency situation.

"We in law enforcement are approachable. Unfortunately, there are some incidents that get national attention, but overall, we are all out here, trying to do a good job and we are here to help," State Police Trooper Chaun Jones said.

Trooper Jones said the questions he gets asked most often from the public are about the new body cameras his troop is testing out.

"How do I feel about it? Does it make my work harder or easier? And the answer is, it makes it a little easier. Most people, sometimes, if they are upset and they see the camera and realize they are being recorded, they bring it down a couple of notches," Jones said.

Jon Peetoskey traveled from Vernon to Wethersfield to speak with police and show them his support.

“I just want them to know they have my support as an old vet, sitting around here, doing a little bit of nothing but drinking coffee," Peetoskey said.

Art Karas, of Wethersfield, enjoyed talking with police in a low-key setting and said the recent incidents across the country have not changed the way he feels about police in Connecticut.

"It is very easy to take a single isolated event and blow it up so that it appears like it is a national trend, when I really in fact do not believe it is," Karas said.

This was the first time state troopers have held “Coffee with a Cop” and troopers said they plan to continue it in the future.