After 12 years as Hamden’s Chief of Police and more than 25 years serving the town, Chief Thomas Wydra is retiring and starting a new chapter.
“The department is in great condition,” Chief Wydra told NBC Connecticut. “In my opinion, that has less to do with me and really a lot to do with the people that are left here.”
Wydra and his twin brother Tim, who is now a lieutenant, joined the department on the same day.
“We did a couple of interviews with local newspapers,” Wydra recalled. “One of the reporters asked us which one of you might be chief someday and we both laughed that off at 22 years old.”
But Wydra rose through the ranks.
“My favorite assignment in this department was when I worked as an undercover police officer in the mid to late 1990s,” he said.
Then in 2006, former Hamden Mayor Craig Henrici named Wydra the town’s top cop.
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“Anything is possible,” Wydra said, “but you have to put the effort in.”
During Wydra’s tenure as chief, Hamden Police became one of the first departments in the state to outfit officers with body cameras.
“That’s a program I’m especially proud of,” he said. “It insulates us from complaints that are illegitimate, but it also strengthens our relationship, we are more transparent.”
As he gets ready to turn in his badge, Wydra said he is also proud of efforts to build a stronger bond between police and the people they serve.
“We are not just law enforcement,” he said. “We are the police and police can install car seats, the police can have Citizens Academy to teach people what we do and how we do it, connecting with kids. If we want to have long lasting trust and good relation with the public, there is no better place to start than with children.”
The department today, Wydra said, better reflects Hamden’s diverse population.
“Folks want to see police officers who look like them,” he added.
Through his nearly 26 year career in law enforcement, Wydra said he has developed “a special place for people who are victims, people who are taken advantage of.”
Wydra said he will continue helping the vulnerable in his new job, director of the Wage and Workplace Standards Division at the Connecticut Department of Labor.
“It’s a division that goes out and quite frankly protects people,” he explained. “Protects people who otherwise might be taken advantage of by employers.”
Hamden Mayor Curt Leng will appoint Chief Wydra’s replacement. For now, Deputy Chief John Capiello will be the town’s acting Chief of Police.
Wydra begins his new job with the state next Friday.
