By Karen Keller
Herald News
HALEDON- A gay cop who sued the borough for discrimination won $450,000 in a settlement Wednesday.
In the May 2004 complaint, Sgt. James Len claimed he was passed over for promotion and harassed because of his sexual orientation.
The brief proceedings in state Superior Court in Paterson on Wednesday contrasted with the case itself — a years-long political intrigue starring the plaintiff, a 20-year borough cop, and the two named defendants, former Mayor Ken Pengitore and former Councilman Ayman Mamkej.
The settlement won’t be considered final until it’s approved by the Borough Council. If the council gives the nod, taxpayers will be responsible for $30,000 of the sum, said Mayor Domenick Stampone, who confirmed the settlement amount. The rest will be paid by a borough insurer, he said.
Len, 45, began work for the department in 1986. In 2002, he told his wife and children he was gay and moved out of his family’s home.
Rumors swirled, and soon he was suffering from sexual discrimination, Len claimed. In his suit, Len said that he’d arrive for work three minutes late and be reprimanded, while other officers were routinely late and not disciplined. He further alleged that Mamkej once called over the police radio “Homo, homo, homo,” and Pengitore referred to Len as a “three dollar bill,” a derogatory term for a homosexual. Len claimed Pengitore and Mamkej tailed him in their cars while he was off duty. Len was up for promotion to lieutenant, he claimed, but was told he didn’t qualify because he didn’t hand in the necessary paperwork on time.
The council is set to consider the settlement Jan. 18.
The council has 45 days to approve the settlement, then 45 more days to pay the sum, according to Charles Sciarra, Len’s Clifton-based attorney.
The settlement also stipulates that past and pending charges brought against Len by the Police Department be expunged from his personnel file, and that any promotion practices in the future be done in “good faith,” Sciarra said, during proceedings in Judge Burrell Humphreys’ courtroom.
Sciarra said he advised Len not to comment for this story and “to look forward, not look back.” Mamkej could not be reached for comment. Pengitore said he didn’t want to comment.
Stampone is the newly elected Democratic mayor who defeated Pengitore, a Republican, in the mayoral race two months ago. He called the Len settlement an isolated incident — “not what the borough of Haledon is about.”
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