With numerous wrong-way crashes and fatalities on Connecticut highways, state lawmakers called Wednesday for making it easier to arrest drunken drivers.
The legislature’s transportation committee is debating a bill that calls for reducing the drunken driving arrest threshold to 0.05% blood alcohol content, down from the current .08.
Thomas B. Chapman of the National Transportation Safety Board testified via Zoom in favor of lowering the limit, a position by the NTSB since 2013. Utah became the first state to do so in 2018 and has seen a drop in fatalities.
Dropping the level, Chapman said, would lower the death rate by an estimated 11%. Like Connecticut, other states that are currently considering .05 are Hawaii, Washington, New York, North Carolina and others.
“We are an outlier,” Chapman said, referring to the United States. “Over 100 countries in the world have .05 or lower … That includes much of Europe, where drinking is part of the culture. What is not part of the culture is drinking and driving. … You are impaired at .05. … There is a demonstrable diminishment in cognitive and physical skills at that level.”
Noting that some drivers would not be deterred and would ignore lower levels, Chapman said, “.05 is not the entire answer on this. It is a piece of the answer.”
Nationally, 13,384 people died in the United States in alcohol-related crashes in 2021, the most recent year where complete numbers are available. That includes 112 alcohol-related deaths in Connecticut.
State transportation Commissioner Garrett Eucalitto, testifying remotely Wednesday from a transportation meeting in Philadelphia, said, “What we have been doing as a state has not been working. … Drunk driving is a reckless choice made by the driver. … Everyone is impaired at .05. I know some people might argue with that … but the science is clear.”
Saying that Connecticut could emulate Utah, Eucalitto said the change to .05 did not decrease tourism or alcohol sales in Utah.
Marijuana impact
While the impact of drunken driving has been well documented for years, state legislators are also questioning the influence of the recent decriminalization of marijuana in Connecticut. Drivers smoking pot become impaired, and police have complained repeatedly that they do not have a simple test for marijuana in the way they can measure blood levels for alcohol.
Marijuana has been involved in some fatal accidents, and both drivers had traces of marijuana in their blood in the wrong-way crash last year that killed state Rep. Quentin “Q” Williams of Middletown after he left the governor’s inaugural ball in Hartford.
Rep. Thomas O’Dea, a New Canaan Republican, said lawmakers need to focus closely on the impact of cannabis on car crashes.
“That’s the elephant in the room in my opinion,” O’Dea said. “My biggest problem is the marijuana laws in Connecticut.”
Mark Mirko/The Hartford Courant
Sen. Tony Hwang of Fairfield is concerned about drivers who have been smoking marijuana and got involved in car crashes.
State Sen. Tony Hwang of Fairfield, the committee’s ranking Senate Republican, said the combination of marijuana and alcohol can be deadly.
“Impairment of any kind is part of the danger on the roads,” Hwang told Chapman. “If we only handle one part and not address the other, it may be a half-completed task. … If you lack common sense, you’re still going to have violators on the roads.”
Chapman responded that alcohol remains the biggest problem, but there is an “increasing prevalence of other impairing substances” that include marijuana.
“It is a growing problem — one that we are concerned about,” Chapman said. “It’s not as easy to test these other substances.”
He noted that airplane pilots have an even higher standard that keeps the skies safe. He noted that pilots avoid alcohol before flying under the mantra of “eight hours from bottle to throttle.”
State Rep. Devin Carney, an Old Lyme Republican, said, “We talk about Big Tobacco, Big Pharma, but we don’t talk about Big Alcohol.”
In an attempt to reduce crashes, the committee voted last year to lower the blood alcohol level for arrest. The measure passed by 21-15 with Republicans and Democrats on both sides of the bipartisan issue. The bill, however, never passed in the state House of Representatives and Senate before time expired.
The measure is part of a broader plan to reduce a skyrocketing number of fatalities on Connecticut roads. Legislators were stunned at 366 deaths on the roads in 2022 — about one per day. The statistics show that 2022 was the worst year on Connecticut roads since 1989. While fatalities dipped to 323 last year, the accidents are continuing this year.
If approved, Connecticut would follow Utah as the second state in the nation at .05. The national standard is .08 that states have enacted in order to avoid losing funding for federal highway construction. As a result, Connecticut is currently at the same level as nearby New York, Massachusetts, Vermont, New Hampshire and Rhode Island.
Wednesday marked the committee’s final public hearing of the 2024 legislative session as nearly 60 people signed up to testify. No decisions were made Wednesday, but all bills are subject to final approval by the full House of Representatives and state Senate before the regular session adjourns on May 8.
Statistics
Besides .05, the committee is working on overall traffic safety, including the deaths of pedestrians and a rash of wrong-way crashes on the highways.
In 2022, the 366 overall deaths were the highest in 33 years. Another peak in 2022 was 73 pedestrian fatalities, compared to 55 pedestrians in 2019 and 2021 and 51 last year.
Motorcycle deaths have claimed 68, 66, and 62 lives over the past three years, up sharply from 49 in 2019.
Wrong-way crashes also peaked in 2022 with 13 accidents that led to 23 fatalities, the highest total by far in recent years. Last year, the total dropped back down to 7 fatalities — still above the levels of four each in 2020 and 2021.
Christopher Keating can be reached at ckeating@courant.com
NEW BRITAIN, CT — Stanley Black & Decker on Thursday said it has decided to close its manufacturing facility in New Britain.
Debora Raymond, vice president of external communications for the manufacturer, said the decision is a result of a “structural decline in demand for single-sided tape measures.”
The New Britain facility predominantly makes these products, according to Raymond.
“These products are quickly becoming obsolete in the markets we serve,” Raymond said, via an emailed statement Thursday.
The decision is expected to impact approximately 300 employees, according to Raymond.
“We are focused on supporting impacted employees through this transition, including providing options for employment at other facilities, severance, and job placement support services for both salaried and hourly employees,” Raymond said.
As of Thursday at 4:30 p.m., no Worker Adjustment and Retraining Notification (WARN) Act notice had been filed with the state Department of Labor.
The company’s corporate headquarters remains at 1000 Stanley Dr., New Britain.
Gov. Ned Lamont released the following statement on the decision:
“Although Stanley has made the decision to discontinue operations for manufacturing outdated products, a change in workforce opportunities is difficult for employees, their families, and any community.,” Lamont said. “However, I am hopeful that these skilled workers will be repurposed with the help of Stanley Black & Decker, a company that will still proudly be headquartered here in Connecticut. My administration is working closely with local and state leaders to support affected workers and to reimagine the factory site so it can continue to create opportunity and strengthen New Britain’s economic future.”
New Britain Mayor Bobby Sanchez said he is “deeply disappointed” the company will be closing its Myrtle Street operations.
“For generations, Stanley Works has been part of the fabric of our city, providing good-paying jobs, supporting families, and helping build New Britain’s proud reputation as the ‘Hardware City,’” Sanchez said.
According to the mayor, his office’s immediate focus is on helping affected workers and their families. The mayor has been in contact with Lamont’s office, and they will be working closely to make sure employees have access to job placement services, retraining opportunities and support, Sanchez said.
“We will continue aggressively pursuing economic development opportunities and attracting businesses that are looking for a true community partner, a city ready to collaborate, innovate and grow alongside them,” Sanchez said. “New Britain has reinvented itself before, and we will do so again.”
Stanley Black & Decker, founded in 1843, operates manufacturing facilities worldwide, according to its website. It reports having 43,500 employees globally, and makes an array of products, such as power tools and equipment, hand tools, and fasteners.
Newly released police video shows former WWE executive Vince McMahon ram his luxury sports car into the rear end of another vehicle on a Connecticut highway last summer as he was being followed by a state trooper.
McMahon, now 80, was driving his 2024 Bentley Continental GT at more than 100 mph on the Merritt Parkway when he crashed in the town of Westport, according to state police.
A trooper’s dashcam video shows McMahon accelerating away, then braking too late to avoid crashing into the back of a BMW. The Bentley then swerves into a guardrail and careens back across the highway, creating a cloud of dirt and car parts.
“Why were you driving all over 100 mph?” state police Detective Maxwell Robins asked McMahon after catching up to the wrecked Bentley, which can cost over $300,000.
“I got my granddaughter’s birthday” McMahon replied, explaining he was on his way to see her. The encounter was recorded on police bodycam video.
No one was seriously injured in the July 24 crash, which happened the same day that WWE legend Hulk Hogan died of a heart attack in Florida.
Besides damage to the rear of the BMW, another vehicle driving on the opposite side of the parkway was struck by flying debris. The driver of that third car happened to be wearing a WWE shirt, according to the police video.
McMahon was cited for reckless driving and following too closely. A state judge in October allowed McMahon to enter a pretrial probation program that will result in the charges being erased from his record next October if he successfully completes the program. He was also ordered to make a $1,000 charitable contribution.
McMahon’s lawyer, Mark Sherman, said the crash was just an accident.
“Not every car accident is a crime,” Sherman said. “Vince’s primary concern during this case was for the other drivers and is appreciative that the court saw this more of an accident than a crime that needed to be prosecuted.”
State police said Robins was trying to catch up to McMahon on the parkway and clock his speed before pulling him over. They said the incident was not a pursuit, which happens when police chase someone trying to flee officers. They also said it did not appear McMahon was trying to escape — though in the video the detective suggests otherwise.
“I’m trying to catch up to you and you keep taking off,” Robins says.
“No, no no. I’m not trying to outrun you,” McMahon says.
An accident information summary provided to the media shortly after the crash did not mention that a trooper was following McMahon.
The Associated Press obtained the videos Wednesday through a public records request. They were first obtained by The Sun newspaper.
The trooper’s bodycam video also shows him asking McMahon whether he was looking at his phone when the crash happened. McMahon said he was not and adds that he hadn’t driven his car in a long time.
After Robins tells McMahon that his car is fast, McMahon replies, “Yeah, too (expletive) fast.”
The videos also show McMahon talking to the driver he rear-ended. Barbara Doran, of New York City, told the AP last summer that McMahon expressed his concern for her and was glad she was OK. She said she was heading to a ferry to Martha’s Vineyard at the time of the crash.
After McMahon was given the traffic summons, he shook hands with Robins and another trooper and they wished him well.
McMahon stepped down as WWE’s CEO in 2022 amid a company investigation into sexual misconduct allegations. He also resigned as executive chairman of the board of directors of TKO Group Holdings, the parent company of WWE, in 2024, a day after a former WWE employee filed a sexual abuse lawsuit against him. McMahon has denied the allegations. The lawsuit remains pending.
McMahon bought what was then the World Wrestling Federation in 1982 and transformed it from a regional wrestling company into a worldwide phenomenon. Besides running the company with his wife, Linda, who is now the U.S. education secretary, he also performed at WWE events as himself.
The New Haven Pride Center will close for 30 days starting Thursday, as leaders reassess the organization’s finances and its long-term business model.
Board members said the temporary shutdown will allow the nonprofit to stop accruing expenses and get better insight into a $250,000 IRS debt discovered in 2022 that has weighed heavily on the center’s operations.
According to board co-chair Hope Chavez, the debt was found four years ago. The board let the executive director go and began paying the back taxes. The payments have been ongoing, but Chavez said there’s no clarity on how much has been paid toward principal versus interest, making it hard to map out a payoff.
Chavez said the organization has an attorney to help obtain more details from the government, and that the debt has hurt its ability to generate income during an already challenging time.
“It all depends on the political climate — whether corporate sponsors feel like they can sponsor you, whether funders feel like they need to redirect elsewhere,” she said.
The 30-day furlough will include a pause in services. In the meantime, staff members are compiling a list of alternative LGBTQ-affirming resources in the Greater New Haven area to support community members.
Laura Boccadoro, who has worked at the center for more than six years, joined at what she says was a dark time.
“I was in and out of rehab dealing with drug abuse, and the center found me,” she said. “I grew up here, honestly.”
She said the organization has offered vital services, such as a clothing closet and a food pantry, and programs that she is helping clients find through partner organizations.
“There are so many LGBTQ-specific or affirming spaces that have food pantries, clothing closets, healthcare — all those kinds of things,” Boccadoro said.
Chavez highlighted partnerships with groups including AIDS Project New Haven, Anchor Health Initiative, and Q Plus, as well as other grassroots community organizations that will offer assistance during the pause.
Boccadoro emphasized that the staff’s focus remains on serving the community as effectively as possible.
“Our job at the end of the day is to impact the community in the best possible way that we can,” Boccadoro said.
The Board hopes a clearer financial picture and a restructured business model will position the center to reopen stronger and more stable.
“We want to ensure that our community has the care and supportive services that we’ve been providing,” Chavez said.
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