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05/02/2018 08:30 AMOn May 1, the Exchange Club of Branford hosted the Honor Our Shoreline Heroes event, recognizing “eight of the finest and bravest serving the towns of East Haven, Branford, North Branford, and Guilford,” including Sergeant Kevin Klarman of the East Haven Police Department.
“It felt good and I was excited that they chose me—there are a lot of good officers in our department,” says Kevin, a Branford native. “It’s an even better feeling because the dinner was held in my hometown where my family still lives and they have always been very supportive of me.”
Growing up in Branford, Kevin saw what it meant to work in public service firsthand as his dad and his uncle were career firefighters and another uncle was a police officer. While he knew he wanted to be involved in public service, Kevin always thought he would become a fireman.
“My intentions were to be a fireman like my father, but my best friend growing up encouraged me to take the police test with him and I found myself hired by the East Haven Police Department several months later,” he says. “I have no regrets and the day I started working there, I realized it was a good fit.”
Kevin was hired by Chief Len Gallo in 2006 and he has been with the department through much of the revitalization and changes that have occurred over the last 12 years. A primary focus of the EHPD is community-based policing, which Kevin enjoys.
“The department has made tremendous progress and I’m really proud to be a part of it,” he says. “Policing is very different in 2018. I gained lot of experience as a patrol officer and learned from the senior guys that you have to build relationships with the community and the people you’re dealing with. A lot of it is about creating relationships in the community.”
Over the years, he has worked toward several certifications, including those in police internal affairs, line supervision, supervisory-level crowd management, and mobile field force training. He is a certified field training officer, has completed command and executive management trainings, and was promoted to the rank of sergeant in 2014.
“Becoming a supervisor is a totally different responsibility,” says Kevin, who has a goal of one day becoming a lieutenant. “You serve as a mentor and are running a shift, so safety is one of my biggest things. You set the tone for what you’re doing and the shift is doing. It’s a very young department and guys look for guidance and I try to lead by example and show these guys this is what’s expected of us and how you treat people.
“I take it very seriously and hold everyone and myself accountable,” adds Kevin. “I enjoy supervising the guys, but I do miss being out on the street as much as when I was a patrolman and interacting with people.”
In addition to his certifications, Kevin has also received a number of “awards, letters of recognition, unit citations, and commendations attesting to his strong character, steadfast commitment and professionalism,” according to Chief Ed Lennon. In 2010, Kevin received the Courage of CT Award for outstanding courage and performance beyond the call of duty.
Kevin has received the Medal of Merit on three separate occasions—among the most of any other officer in the department’s history. As a patrol officer, he has been acknowledged several times for exemplary performance for incidents involving armed suspects in both 2007 and 2009, and in 2016, under his leadership, a kidnapping suspect who had abducted a toddler in New Haven was apprehended by East Haven police officers.
“Those cases may stand out to the media, but we definitely do a lot of smaller things on a daily basis that go unnoticed that impact the community more,” says Kevin. “There’s stuff we do every night that’s not as exciting, but it’s what we’re doing to keep the community safe.”
Even though his job can be trying at times, Kevin finds his work with the police department very rewarding.
“We are there to help people solve their problems. When they need us, we’re there immediately, and that’s what public service is about,” says Kevin, who is an active member of the Branford Italian American Club. “Occasionally you’ll have people come up and thank you months later and that’s the reward that really makes an impact, knowing you made a difference.”
Kevin is quick to point out that he has received a lot of support throughout his career from his family, the administration of the Town of East Haven, the community, and other members of the EHPD. He is grateful to his many mentors, including Chief Lennon, who was a field training officer when Kevin was first hired. He also credits the officers who work on his shifts for contributing to his success as a supervisor.
“We all work together, have a job to do, and depend on each other,” says Kevin. “It’s great to be part of it and to be promoted with these guys as we’ve worked our way up through patrol. There’s a lot of talent at the police department, from the front line supervisors to the young officers who work for me.”