Norman GianCursio of Brockport says the $67,000 settlement reached in exchange for dropping his lawsuit filed against Brockport Police Chief Daniel Varrenti and the Village is substantial but, “is not nearly enough to repair the damage inflicted on the community.”
GianCursio was arrested by Brockport Police in March 2012 and charged with reckless endangerment following a minor fire in 2011 at the home of then Mayor Connie Castaneda. GianCursio was accused of telling a tenant in the home to remain inside during the event to keep the apartment from being discovered.
In September 2012, a Town of Ogden jury found GianCursio not guilty of the charge.
“It should be clear to all that even after my acquittal, Varrenti refused to accept responsibility for his own bad judgment and misbehavior and village leaders failed to pull the reins on him,” GianCursio said in a statement. He called the arrest “political payback” to silence his complaints regarding the expense to the village of the Police Department. “Varrenti’s reckless behavior forced me to sue him and the village for false arrest,” GianCursio said.
“When a citizen is a victim of abuse of power by the police, community trust (of) its protectors is eroded,” GianCursio said. “The Brockport Police Department should be held accountable for the abuse of power and intimidation perpetuated against innocent citizens.”
GianCursio says, “The substantial monetary settlement paid to me by Chief Varrenti and the Village of Brockport along with the documents they were forced to publicly disclose have vindicated me.
“As long as village leaders do not publicly stop abuses by the BPD, there will be little faith in our village board, the police, and the new village court,” GianCursio continued and added that Chief Varrenti and the Village tried to silence him by demanding a confidentiality gag order, but he refused.
“It was most important to me that the truth be known,” he said.
The Confidentiality clause in the settlement agreement states: “Plaintiff and Defendants agree that nothing in the agreement shall be construed to impose an obligation of confidentiality upon either party.”
Also under terms of the agreement, the Village and Chief Varrenti do not admit to any wrongdoing and deny all allegations of wrongdoing.
“A primary component of this settlement agreement is that neither the village nor the Chief acknowledge, admit, or are found to have engaged in any misconduct or wrongdoing as was alleged by Mr. GianCursio,” the Village of Brockport said in a statement prepared by the village attorney and insurance attorney. “The Village and Chief maintain that they did not engage in any such misconduct or wrongdoing.
“While the Village Board and Chief of Police believe that litigation of the issues would have ultimately exonerated them, they approved the settlement as a business decision made in the best interests of the Village of Brockport,” the statement concludes.
