A New Haven assistant police chief has been suspended following an internal investigation.
Assistant Chief Luiz Casanova has been ordered to one day of suspension without pay, police said.
The suspension comes after an investigation into inappropriate comments made during a verbal interaction between Casanova and a patrol officer that happened last week.
Interim police chief Anthony Campbell told NBC Connecticut that Casanova also attempted to deny the officer his entitled union representation during a meeting.
“This behavior is not what we train our supervisors to model and it is not behavior that we expect any officer to exhibit with the public,” Campbell said.
However, not everyone in the New Haven community agrees with Campbell's disciplinary action.
Kica Matos is a community activist who's part of a group trying to organize a rally on Casanova's behalf at city hall on Wednesday.
U.S. & World
"They think the right thing to do is step up for a police officer who's always had their back," Matos said about the group's supporters.
Casanova's attorney, Norm Pattis, said he is exploring options to somehow fight aganist the disciplinary action.
"The accusation is ridiculous," Pattis said. "The discipline is preposterous."
The day off will happen before the end of the year.
The New Haven Clergy Association, New Haven Guardians and the Civil Shields are scheduled to hold a press conference about the incident on Tuesday.
