Rocky Hill Town Leaders Establish Petition in Effort Curb Crime

There is a growing call for the state's legislature to host a special session to deal with the amount of crime happening in some communities.

The latest response to the uptick in crime is a petition from Rocky Hill leaders, residents and others in the community who are all calling for a special session to find a solution to the rise in property crime.

Several people, elected leaders and town officials met on Wednesday night to talk about the uptick in crime and solutions.

The car break-ins, thefts, and in some cases assaults, are spilling over into several other towns, including Glastonbury, New Britain, and Marlborough.

"I just came out to my car one day and my glove box was open, my car door was left open," said James Vasquenza, whose car was broken into during the summer.

"Rocky Hill is kind of a quiet town, like you wouldn't expect someone to break into your car," he said.

The petition also calls for a new law to deter the behavior, specifically the 10 percent of repeat juvenile offenders, which some in the town say lack accountability. People in the town are also calling for a system that provides adequate resources necessary to reduce recidivism rates.

"Anybody I talk to now in Rocky Hill, any resident I talk to, knows someone, if he hasn't been actually affected himself, or herself," said Pankaj Prakash, a town councilor and member of the public safety committee. "I think it's a complex issue with a lot of pieces. We need to take a good look at how we actually tackle the issue of property crime."

Prakash also said the town has been calling for reform to the current laws since earlier this year.

"January and February resolution was just a letter to the governor and state lawmakers to actually bring to their attention this issue, which we saw trending up in the data," said Prakash.