After two Darien police officers were arrested in an incident last summer in which a gun was fired in a residential neighborhood while the officers were off duty, the Police Commission on Monday imposed 60-day suspensions without pay for each officer.
The officers, James Martin (then 41 years old) and Daniel Ehret (then 38), will return to work. They were both suspended with pay since the incident and arrested by town police in October.
Each was charged with second-degree reckless endangerment, second-degree breach of peace and illegal discharge of a firearm. Their cases are still pending in state Superior Court in Stamford, where they are next scheduled to appear on March 31.
An agreement with the Police Commission allowing them to return to work may indicate a negotiated plea agreement with prosecutors is pending.
“The suspension will be retroactive, with the officers reimbursing the town for 60 days of the pay and benefits received while they were on administrative leave,” according to an announcement released Monday night by the Police Department.
______________
See also:
- Two Darien Police Officers Charged by State Police in Shooting Incident (Oct. 6, 2015)
- After Arrest of Two Darien Police Officers, Chief Says Alleged Conduct ‘Intolerable’ (Oct. 6)
- Police: Highway Workers’ Alarm at Gunshots Led to Arrest of 2 Darien Police Officers (Oct. 19)
______________
The commission, in a negotiated settlement with the two officers, also agreed to the following:
- The officers may both return both to work with disciplinary suspensions of 60 days
- conditions on their work for the next 60 days
- restrictions on promotions and special assignments for two years
- possible termination of employment without right of appeal if there are repeat violations of the department’s written rules for officers (called “Departmental General Orders”) for the next five years — a kind of probation.
Here’s the full announcement:
With a vote of the Darien Police Commission this afternoon, the status of Police Officers Daniel Ehret and James Martin has been resolved. The officers have been on administrative leave since an off-duty incident on Aug. 1, 2015, involving the discharge of a personally owned firearm at Martin’s home, directed at a vehicle owned by Martin. When police arrived at the scene, they found the vehicle with bullet holes in it and spent shell casings adjacent to the vehicle.
The Police Department conducted an extensive internal affairs investigation into the incident, which resulted in disciplinary charges being levied against both Ehret and Martin. The officers cooperated fully in the investigation.
The Department’s General Orders call for a Police Commission hearing on charges calling for discipline greater than a two-day suspension, and the matter was referred to the Commission. Hearings were to be held today and Thursday. However, agreements were reached with both officers and the Police Union regarding the disposition of the charges.
The Commission and the Town approved the negotiated “last chance agreements” for both officers, which will close the internal affairs investigation and return both to work with disciplinary suspensions of 60 days, conditions on their work for the next 60 days, restrictions on promotions and special assignments for two years, and the potential for termination without right of appeal if there are repeat violations of Departmental General Orders for the next five years.
The suspension will be retroactive, with the officers reimbursing the town for 60 days of the pay and benefits received while they were on administrative leave.
According to Darien Police Commission Chairman Paul Johnson, “The Police Commission thinks that this is an effective resolution for the officers, the department, and the town. The incident was thoroughly investigated and this settlement balances the gravity of the situation against the officers’ years of laudable service.”
_________
Like Darienite.com on Facebook and follow Darienite.com on Twitter.