By Anthony G. Attrino
nj.com
DEMAREST, N.J. — A police captain in Bergen County has filed a lawsuit against the borough of Demarest, claiming he was denied a promotion to chief after raising numerous public safety issues over the years.
Frank Visaggio, a police officer in the borough for 23 years, claims in court papers his troubles began early in his career when he was a Hudson County Sheriff’s Officer and wrote traffic tickets to the nephew of a Demarest councilman.
“There was a legitimate basis for the issuance of those tickets, but the plaintiff was told that it would be better for his career if he dismissed those tickets,” according to the suit filed July 26 in Superior Court of Bergen County.
The lawsuit does not name the person who asked the officer to dismiss the tickets, but says Visaggio was told he should personally apologize to the councilman for having issued the tickets to his nephew. He dismissed the tickets and apologized, according to the lawsuit.
Thomas Zuppa Jr., a labor attorney for the borough, said “the borough is aware of the complaint, but does not comment on threatened or pending litigation.”
After Visaggio was hired as an officer in the Demarest Police Department in 2000, he brought up his concern that there was no field training officer for new patrolmen who had completed initial training at the academy.
“Plaintiff questioned that because untrained officers could become a public safety issue,” the suit says.
Visaggio, 56, also questioned why there were no supervisors working midnight shifts, the suit says.
During his career in Demarest, Visaggio “became very vocal” during council meetings, expressing concerns about the lack of supervisors in the department and the lack of crossing guards at certain locations, the suit says.
A council member allegedly told a supervisor to “tell Visaggio to shut up and stop talking to the residents; he is getting promoted to lieutenant,” the suit says.
Over the years, Visaggio says he complained about other public safety issues, including the borough’s failure to hire off-duty officers to monitor town paving jobs to protect pedestrians and school children from dump trucks and other equipment.
Vissagio also objected when a former police chief was given a retirement plan that included a police vehicle “with the full police package, which is not to be driven by non-police personnel” and left the department short a vehicle, the suit alleges.
The lawsuit alleges Visaggio was denied a promotion to police chief as retaliation for his whistleblower activities, which are protected under the state’s Conscientious Employee Protection Act.
Visaggio is also alleging violations of his constitutional rights to free speech and due process, along with violations of borough ordinances and allegations of conspiracy.
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