Connecticut: 94 Municipal Police Departments = 6,500 Local Police

Connecticut, with 169 municipalities, has 94 separate and distinct municipal police departments employing a total of 6,527 police officers. Nineteen of the departments employ 100 or more police officers, 20 employ between 50 and 100 officers; and 55 employ fewer than 50 officers, including 12 that employ fewer than 20. The data was compiled this year by the Connecticut legislature’s Office of Legislative Research (OLR).

In addition to the 94 municipal police departments, all or part 79 municipalities in the state are under State Police jurisdiction - either because they do not have their own organized police department or have agreed, under a contract, to let the State Police supervise their police officers or constables.

Of those communities, 53 have opted for resident state troopers who are stationed in the municipalities and work exclusively with them. The other 26 are served by the State Police troop responsible for the region of the state that includes that particular municipality.

The largest municipal police department is in Hartford, with 401 police officers, according to the OLR report issued this month. Other communities included among the state’s ten largest police departments are New Haven (345), Bridgeport (340), Waterbury (295), Stamford (266), Greenwich (174), Norwalk (171), New Britain (161), Danbury (150) and West Hartford (143).

The next largest are Meriden (122), East Hartford (119), Fairfield (118), Bristol (117), West Haven (114), Middletown (112), Milford (109), Manchester (108), and Stratford (103), followed by Enfield (94) and Hamden (93).

A similar OLR Report in 2016 found 92 municipal departments employing 6,628 police officers.  At that time the state’s largest municipal police force was in New Haven, at 436, followed by Hartford (406), Waterbury (276), Stamford (273) and Greenwich (181).

Last week, in presenting his proposed state budget to legislators at the State Capitol, Governor Ned Lamont called for approval of a comprehensive series of laws aimed at reducing gun violence in the state.

“While Connecticut remains one of the safest states in the nation with a violent crime rate less than half of the national rate, one shooting is one too many, and it is our responsibility to enact sensible policies that make our communities safer,” Governor Lamont said.

“These are commonsense proposals that are focused on protecting our neighborhoods, stopping the illegal flow of guns into our state, and providing law enforcement and the communities they serve with the resources they need to address the root causes of violence,” he added.

The data for the OLR analysis, in 2022 and 2016, was provided by the Police Officer Standards and Training Council.