Crime & Safety

Father Arrested After Exposing Gaps in School Security

An East Haven man says he only wanted to show school officials and the community how children in town — and throughout Connecticut — are vulnerable.

By Gary Jeanfaivre

A father's passion to keep his children safe in school landed him a court appearance Tuesday night when he was arrested for breach of peace.

Angelo Appi Jr. has been documenting apparent gaps in school security in his hometown of East Haven, and posting about them on his personal Facebook page. His documentation includes videos of open windows and doors at the middle school, and one of him walking right in without being stopped.

One of Appi's posts reportedly rubbed parents the wrong way, and that was what led to his arrest for breach of peace, according to a report by NBC Connecticut.

In one of his many Facebook posts about school security, he wrote: "No one is paying attention. The children in our schools are at risk. I can walk into any school in CT. Cameras and buzzers do nothing to protect our children. Especially doors that are wide open. I could of [sic] easily abducted a child."

Like all schools in Connecticut and across the country, East Haven implemented new measures to step up security in the wake of the deadly school shooting at Sandy Hook Elementary last year. In that incident, on Dec. 14, 2012, 20 students and six educators were killed when a lone gunman shot his way into the school; he killed himself as police approached.

Following his arrest — he turned himself in after learning of the warrant for his arrest — Appi once again took to his Facebook page. He writes:

"Thank You Everyone!!! I'm home and doing well. It's been a long and exhausting night. I have been reading hundreds and hundreds and hundreds of your comments. It's overwhelming. I want to thank each and every one of you for the good words and supporting me 100%. All I ask is that you keep up with the positive comments. It means alot. I love my daughter, and I love all of your children as well. And you got my word I won't back down when it comes to their safety. I'm not going to stand by and see them fall victim to someones negligence. Feel free to share your positive thoughts here. The more the merry. God Bless our children. And God Bless you all for your confidence in me."


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