Chief recommends firing officers in paralyzed prisoner case

By DAVE COLLINS
Associated Press

The police chief in New Haven, Connecticut has recommended that four officers be fired for mistreating a Black man who became paralyzed from the chest down last year in a police van that braked suddenly. Police Chief Karl Jacobson on Tuesday announced that internal affairs investigations found the officers committed misconduct in the case of Richard “Randy” Cox. Jacobson’s recommendations now go to city police commissioners. Officials say a fifth officer committed misconduct but can’t be disciplined because he retired. The five officers also are criminally charged. Cox was paralyzed last June when the van driver braked hard. A lawyer for one of the officers says they’re being used as scapegoats for the department’s inadequate training and policies.