Letter: O'Keefe was a Political Target

Where were the T-shirts and bumper stickers over the racist emails from the Chief?

Where was the press conference demanding Sgt. Kelly’s ouster after he admittedly wrote numerous emails to a town resident inviting her to the police department (during working hours!) for sex?

Those matters didn’t suit the Chatham Party agenda – you see, those gentleman are part of the “CP good old boys.”  Whereas Jeff O’Keefe was a political target.

Imagine the circus that would have taken place if Jeff O’Keefe sent racist or sexual emails???? Within hours Sue Weintraub would have been on the steps of Town Hall holding a press conference.

And remember the show of discourse the Chatham Party leadership showed on this event: 

On October 15, 2009, a dinner and State of the Town Address was held at Saint Clement's Castle and was attended by 125 East Hampton citizens. This event was not paid for by the Town of East Hampton but by a ticket for $35 that was purchased by each person attending the dinner. As we are accustomed to, we all were more than happy to spend $35 for a worthwhile cause ... to honor our town.

Following the Keynote Speaker, Bill Finch, the Mayor of Bridgeport, our Town Manager, Jeffery O’Keefe, announced the awards for the evening.    

Jeffery O'Keefe announced the volunteers of the year, which included Russell Oakes, Tom Donnelly, Dennis Griswold and Robert Heidel. The mention of these hard working volunteers brought down the house. It was truly what East Hampton represents ... people caring for each other.

A small gathering in the back of the room did not participate. The Chatham Party. They refused to purchase tickets but demanded access to the event.

How can the Chatham Party say they represent our community ... not just a select few? How can they say they share a vision for our town?

What this community does not need is ... a small gathering in the back of the room that does not put community first!"

This council took our black and blues for sure: Knowing now that there was likely no harassment at all by Jeff O’Keefe, it’s a good thing this Council didn’t bow to the CP pressure to fire O’Keefe. If we did, we’d be facing a multimillion dollar wrongful termination lawsuit. Instead, we allowed Mr. O’Keefe to move on by giving him what we all agreed to do via his contract.

I can’t speak for all the council, but I bought into O’Keefe’s numbers that show we spend far more on police protection than like towns. And, that less than half the towns in Connecticut have a Police Chief. It’s interesting how in the time since O’Keefe eliminated the chief position how popular “right-sizing government” has become on a state and national level.

Don’t buy into their clichés about Community and Openness. It’s all about them – as you can clearly see from above.

John W. Tuttle
East Hampton resident