Politics & Government
$600K Settlement Going to Former Fair Lawn Police Officer
Former police Sgt. Michael Messina filed two lawsuits against the borough, which have now both been settled.
The Fair Lawn Council voted to approve a $600,000 settlement this week with former police sergeant Michael Messina.
The settlement marks the first time since 2007 that the borough is not facing litigation from a police officer.
"I'm not happy about the dollar amount, but I am happy that we finally put all the lawsuits behind us," Mayor John Cosgrove said.
The borough will be responsible for paying $200,000 of the settlement. The other two-thirds will come from the Municipal Excess Liability Fund and Summit Risk.
Messina had sued the borough twice for alleged malicious retaliation by former Chief Erik Rose, improper assignments for his rank and owed back pay. The council also approved a $550,000 settlement with Messina last year for the first suit after a jury found in his favor two years earlier.
The settlement "is not an admission of liability or damages," according to the council resolution approved this week.
Several other lawsuits from borough police officers have also been resolved. Cosgrove said he expected that the settlement of this last suit would allow the department to move on.
"I'm confident in our police department's leadership," Cosgrove said. "We can put this behind us."
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