In what was sometimes a heated discussion, municipal and state officials tried to tackle the issue of unfunded state mandates during a two-hour meeting Thursday.

But after municipal leaders spoke about all the cuts they already had made and brainstormed ways the state could offer them some relief, an argument over which policies would actually pass the legislature broke out between New Haven Mayor John DeStefano and Vernon Mayor Jason McCoy.

Following an official racial-profiling complaint by a New Haven church, the U.S. Department of Justice has decided that police practices in East Haven deserve a closer look.

Click here to continue reading Thomas' report from East Haven.

Chief elected officials from 10 cities and towns will meet for the first time Thursday morning to talk about how to cut $84 million in municipal aid.

After a five-year legal battle that ended in the U.S. Supreme Court, Frank Ricci and 13 fellow firefighters moved one step closer to getting the promotions they were deprived of.

Ricci (at center in top photo) and 19 other mostly white firefighters sued the city when it threw out the results of a 2003 promotional test because African-Americans performed poorly.

Click here to continue reading Thomas' report.

After an "unbelievable" closed-door session, the New Haven Democracy Fund slapped a $500 fine on the mayor's campaign for a late filing. Then it gave him a pass for "flying in the face of" the spirit of the clean elections law by moving cash into a political action committee to support aldermanic candidates.

Click here to continue reading Melissa's report.

Ansonia--A 30-year-old man was charged Friday with torching the awning at the Ansonia Republican headquarters on West Street.

Alberto Lamberty, of West Street, was charged with third-degree arson and first-degree criminal mischief.

Lamberty's alleged act is not thought to have been motivated by politics, police said. Rather, it was a random act, according to information from Lt. Wayne Williams, the department's spokesman.

Click here to read continue reading Eugene's report.

Middletown Common Council chambers were packed Monday night, mostly by supporters of the St. Vincent de Paul Soup Kitchen, and the concept of feeding the hungry. Sympathetic residents, member of the faith based community, and patrons of the local soup kitchen gathered for an agenda item upon which no action would need to be taken.

Click here to continue reading Ed's report from The Middletown Eye.

After his effort to repeal the death penalty fell short of victory, state Rep. Gary Holder-Winfield recruited students to join in the next steps.

Holder-Winfield, a freshman legislator, represents much of Dixwell, Newhallville and the Yale campus. He told a crowd of 20 students at Yale's Afro-American Cultural Center Tuesday how he came very close this year to passing a bill that would have ended the execution of convicted criminals.

Click here to continue reading Melinda's report.

When a man got shot behind Popeye's on Monday, no one called 911 -- but a rooftop sensor sent cops an instant alert.

The alert came in at 7:14 p.m. though the city's new Shot Spotter program, said Lt. Robert Muller. The system employs sensors to detect gunfire and locate where it came from.

Click here to continue reading Melissa's report.

After testifying yesterday at a state Public Health Department hearing about Food Not Bombs, St. Vincent de Paul Soup Kitchen director Ron Krom was afraid of the repercussions.

As a witness for Food Not Bombs he explained that the soup kitchen on Main Street in Middletown regularly served a Sunday dinner with food prepared and donated by individuals in the community.

"I thought they might do something," Krom said Tuesday morning. "And here we are this morning being told we are going to be cited."

Click here to continue reading Ed's report from the Middletown Eye and here to see our report following the first hearing in the matter.