A 26-year-old Darien man in an argument with his sister deliberately broke the television set of his sister and texted her a photo of the broken set, police said.
Darien police described the incident with this account, including accusations not proven in court:
On Friday, June 30, the brother and sister, who both live at a home on Allen O’Neill Drive, communicated through text messages as they argued about who would drive their mother from work. The man was at home, his sister wasn’t.
The sister later showed police a text message from her brother that said,“Looks like you’re getting a new TV then,” with a picture of the television with a broken screen. The sister went to police and showed them the text and photo.
Police then went to the home to try to talk with the brother. He wasn’t there, but his mother was. She said she bought the television for her daughter several years before and believed her son had damaged it. She called her son while police were at the home, but didn’t reach him.
An hour after police left, the son went to Police Headquarters, where he admitted that he broke the TV because of the argument.
Police issued him a misdemeanor summons charging him with disorderly conduct and third-degree criminal mischief. The summons directed him to appear later in state Superior Court in Stamford. He was told not to have any contact with his sister and not to return to the home.
Police released this statement about how state law governs their actions when faced with domestic violence accusations:
When an incident occurs between people whose relationship falls under the “Domestic Violence” statutes, domestic violence laws are invoked. These laws require the police to make an arrest if probable cause exists that a crime occurred. In domestic violence situations, police do not have discretion when it comes to making an arrest.