Community members are sharing mixed reactions to how the Manchester Police Department handled three officers who were filmed saying they would start a "manhunt" for an unhoused person. While some believe the matter was resolved fairly, others believe that the officers deserved stricter discipline.
The initial confrontation happened on Aug. 12, near the intersection of Londonderry Lane and Union Street in downtown Manchester. According to documents provided to NHPR under a records request, an internal investigation into the conduct of the officers documented infractions for “Conduct Unbecoming an Officer,” “Discourtesy” and “Body-Worn Camera” procedures.
“Some of the statements made and antics employed by the officers in this incident would be rightly described as childish and immature. Even the officers themselves concede that such behavior is not acceptable,” the report notes. “The citizenry has a right to expect more from its police officers. Frustration or not, the expectation from the community is that law enforcement professionals behave as such- professionals.”
Two of the officers involved, Officers Austin Biery and Dominic Sardo, were suspended for two days and will be sent to sensitivity training, If they break any other standard operating procedures in the next year, they will face two additional days of suspension. Biery was also removed as a Field Training Officer for one year.
The report also noted that both officers did not operate their body cameras properly, as Bierry turned his off before finishing the interaction and Sardo did not turn his on.
A third officer, James McCoy, stayed in the police cruiser as backup, according to the report. He received a written reprimand for what the report called “childish” comments – counting to three over the cruiser’s sound system so the unhoused person would run away. Two other officers were present for the interaction but were not disciplined.
Manny Content, a lifelong Manchester resident who previously served on the city’s police commission, thinks that the disciplinary action is fair. He said sensitivity training is helpful, and it is important to rectify the mistake and move on.
“I just don't believe in just terminating somebody because of some verbal misdoings,” Content said. “I think we need to start fixing issues. Not just discarding issues or pushing people away.”
However, other Manchester residents believe that the offense deserved stricter discipline.
Brandon LeMay has been advocating for unhoused people in Manchester since 2020. He called the police department’s disciplinary measures in this case “slap on the wrist.” Lemay said the incident was a “huge” violation of basic human dignity and that the kind of discipline erodes the trust between the police and the public.
However, beyond this isolated incident, Lemay said his biggest concern is how the police treat unhoused people more broadly. He said elected officials have an attitude that degrades unhoused people, which extends to the attitudes of law enforcement.
Police accounts of the Aug. 12 incident mention that the unhoused person was about to defecate in an alley. But Lemay pointed out that the city has closed public restrooms, which puts unsheltered people in a “no-win situation.”
“I really haven't seen any sort of systemic solutions to the problems that we're facing,” Lemay said. “If we're really worried about people defecating in an alley, we need public restrooms.”
