Norwich police chief discusses police response to Jenkins Park brawl – NBC Connecticut

Norwich’s police chief wants to look into a brawl and the police response to the incident that occurred in Jenkins Park on June 29.

Police Chief Patrick Daley has scheduled a press conference for Monday at 2 p.m. to answer questions and release videos from police body-worn cameras.

A charity basketball tournament ended in chaos after a fight broke out in the park. According to Norwich Police, between 10 and 20 people were involved in the brawl, which led to the response of several local police departments.

Some people who attended the event expressed concerns about the police’s handling of the situation.

“They say it was gang activity, fighting between gang members – no, it was teenagers fighting over a girl. At one point it looked like there was more to it, but there wasn’t,” said one person who was there.

According to police, during attempts to de-escalate the situation, more of the hundreds of participants in the event joined the fight.

“It got pretty big, it got pretty violent, but we broke it up and when Norwich police arrived they escalated the situation rather than deescalated it,” said one attendee at the event.

Some of those present felt that officers had used excessive force against the crowd and individuals.

“I just didn’t think they needed seven police officers for one person,” said one event-goer.

That person is 23-year-old Jayden Jarmon, who police say punched someone in the back of the head.

As authorities attempted to make an arrest, Norwich police said Jarmon put an officer in a chokehold and began hitting him in the head with his hands and knees.

For this reason, the police used punches, drug spray and a stun gun to arrest the man.

Others present did not agree with the police’s statements.

“They’re trying to make it seem like he hit police officers,” said one attendee at the event. “I didn’t see it personally, a lot of other people said they didn’t see it personally.”

The video included in the story above shows only a portion of what happened Saturday night.