Manchester Police have released few details about their response to the ‘manhunt incident’

Officials in Manchester said several police officers were disciplined after they were filmed during an incident in August when they said they were launching a “manhunt for a homeless person” in an alleyway.

Manchester police provided few details about the officers involved and their discipline, and did not respond to further questions from NHPR. However, the Union Leader reports that police have suspended two officers and issued one with a written reprimand.

In a joint statement from the police department and the mayor’s office Tuesday morning, Police Chief Allen Aldenberg took full responsibility for the officers’ actions.

“I also have a responsibility to address their behavior to make them better police officers,” Aldenberg said. “I am fully confident that the officers involved have learned a lot from this incident and I am confident that this behavior will not be repeated.”

Manchester Mayor Jay Ruais said he supported the department and its handling of the incident. He said law enforcement “must always be done compassionately and empathetically, with the ultimate goal of connecting a person to help and breaking the cycle of homelessness.”

“If any individual in this city wants and needs help, it is available to them,” Ruais said, “but we cannot tolerate unlawful behaviour and I will continue to support Manchester Police in their job.”

At a meeting of the Council of Mayors and Aldermen in early September, about a dozen Manchester residents expressed their disapproval of the city’s treatment of homeless residents and this incident in particular.

Homelessness has been a persistent problem throughout New Hampshire in recent years, and this summer, Manchester’s mayor and city council voted to ban camping on city streets and in parks after the Supreme Court previously ruled it was allowed.