STAMFORD -- Brent Larrabee officially leaves the Stamford Police Department this weekend after serving as its chief for the past five years. In a letter addressed to Police Department employees, the outgoing chief recapped what he called his legacy at the department and also issued some words of warning for his successor.
Larrabee said the decreasing ranks of officers threatens the ability of police to prevent crimes before they happen. Stamford has about 283 officers, which Larrabee said is much less than departments in cities with similar populations.
"As our force continues to be stretched even thinner, I am fearful that many of the strides we have made in public safety will be lost," Larrabee wrote. "The worst thing that could happen to Stamford is for the police response to revert to a reactive one."
The task of leading a police department limited by manpower shortages and budget constraints will likely fall upon Assistant Chief Robert Nivakoff, who was named by Mayor Michael Pavia as the city's next police chief.
His confirmation as chief must be approved by elected officials, and Nivakoff is slated to appear before the Appointments Committee of the Board of Representatives on Jan. 26. His term as police chief, if confirmed, would expire in November 2013.
"I wish Chief Larrabee well and thank him for his service to the city of Stamford and I look forward to the challenges ahead," Nivakoff said.
According to a department spokesman, Larrabee used up several remaining vacation days before his five-year contract ended Sunday. The chief did not responded to interview requests.
In his farewell letter to Police Department employees, Larrabee commended the department for helping Stamford enjoy relatively low crime rates but must focus on preventing crime among juveniles. In 2008, 81 percent more juveniles were arrested on robbery charges and 65 percent more were arrested on charges of aggravated assault, compared with the previous year.
The chief highlighted the several youth programs initiated under his watch, including an after-school boxing program in the South End, a pilot youth court in charter schools and a juvenile review board. Larrabee also helped form a police cadet program for high school juniors interested in becoming police officers.
Sgt. Joseph Kennedy, president of the police union, said he doesn't think the leadership change at the Police Department reflects on the chief's performance.
"I think his heart was in the right place," Kennedy said. "He tried to do a lot here."
Kennedy said Larrabee faced several obstacles, mainly the two issues brought up in Larrabee's letter: manpower levels and budget constraints. As a result, the department lost its homeland security unit and walking patrol routes. It almost lost police officers stationed in the high schools when the chief discussed putting those officers into patrol units, but the posts were deemed too valuable to lose.
"That took its toll on Chief Larrabee's administration," Kennedy said. "It really makes it tough to try and do crime initiatives when you don't have the manpower to support specific units."
As a result, Kennedy said, many of the unresolved issues between rank-and-file officers and police brass are long-standing ones. For instance, officers in the department's investigative units still don't have the official rank of detective. That means there is no rank in the department between officer and sergeant, as there is in other departments. Officers who work in specialized investigative units receive same pay and title as patrol officers.
The dispute over the detective rank has simmered for years, coming to a head when Larrabee first took over the department in 2005 and several veteran investigators requested they leave the detective bureau because of the issue.
Kennedy has also been lobbying for a emergency services team and more tactical training.
Joseph Tarzia, the chairman of the Board of Finance, the elected board that controls the city's finances, had stronger words for the outgoing chief. A frequent critic of the Police Department, Tarzia criticized Larrabee for taking frequent trips to Florida during his tenure. He also denounced his fiscal responsibility, saying he gave blank checks to some of his units.
"I was expecting more of him," Tarzia said. "When he first came in, he showed a lot of promise, but over the year, I just felt it wasn't the kind of commitment to the job that I expected. To be honest, I was kind of disillusioned and disappointed."
Larrabee ended his letter thanking employees of the Police Department and the city, telling them he cherished his time as chief.
"We have paved the foundation for Stamford to be a leader in the policing industry well into the future," Larrabee said. "I am confident that under the leadership of my successor, this great department will continue to serve as a beacon for others to emulate."
Staff writer Jeff Morganteen can be reached at jeff.morganteen@scni.com or 203-964-2215.