The organization was heavily militaristic, and its internal culture was similar in this regard to other state police agencies in New England.

[6] In 1997 the Connecticut State Police was at the center of Connecticut Governor John G. Rowland’s Geargate scandal[7] Surplus military equipment intended for the State Police was diverted by Rowland and close associates for their personal use.

Equipment and apparel including sleeping bags, camouflage jackets, helmets, and a bayonet made their way into the hands of Rowland’s children, his staff, his security detail, and the husband of then Lt. Gov.

[10] In June 2023, following a news report revealed that four state troopers had fabricated hundreds of traffic stop tickets, an audit released by researchers at the University of Connecticut and Northeastern University found that nearly 26,000 reports made to the state's racial profiling database could not be corroborated, and that possibly over 58,000 falsified records were created.

[11] Upon its release, the report attracted concern from members of the Connecticut General Assembly and civil rights groups such as the ACLU, whose Connecticut chapter released a statement saying the ticket falsifications showed "breathtaking disrespect" for the state's ban on racial profiling, and efforts to reduce systemic racism in policing.

[12] While this was happening, state officials placed an officer on administrative leave after he reported motorists he interacted with as Native American when they belonged to other racial groups.

[14] By this time, speculation over a civil rights component within the ongoing federal investigation began, as some lawyers commented that the federal government could enter into a consent decree with the state government if it found that the falsification of traffic stops was widespread enough to skew demographic data collected.

[16] In June 2022, CSP began transitioning to the Glock 45 9mm fitted with a tactical light and night sights.

Uniquely, the CSP uses a fleet consisting almost entirely of unmarked police cars, most commonly in grey, with or without custom-marked detachable roof-mounted lightbars.

CSP police motorcycles are painted black with text identifying them as state trooper units on the sides and front windshield.

CSP police helicopters use a livery of navy blue, black, maroon, and dark brown.

[citation needed] In September 2022, the CSP used a helicopter from the Massachusetts National Guard to locate illegal cannabis cultivation sites.