From Dan Tepfer, CT Post:
A Superior Court jury awarded $126,000 to a former city elementary school principal who claimed he was fired after a school employee made up allegations he was abusing students to cover up her thefts from an after-school program.
After two days of deliberation, a jury of three men and three women found that the former principal, Andrew Cimmino, had been the victim of a scheme by two former school employees, Maria Marcoccia and Sally Lyddy, that led to his firing from the Thomas Hooker School in 2010.
“It’s been a long journey and the worst part is that after 20-something-years my employer never cared,” said Cimmino. “It was all smoke and mirrors.”
But he’s not getting his job back; the school board did not renew his contract.
While the jury’s award is for pay Cimmino lost when he was fired, the jury also found punitive damages which must still be decided by Superior Court Judge Mary Sommer.
Cimmino’s lawyer, Josephine Smalls Miller, said the final verdict could exceed $250,000.
Only the two women, Marcoccia and Lyddy, are liable for the verdict.
Earlier, the judge threw out all claims Cimmino had against the Board of Education for his firing, a ruling Miller said she will appeal.
Following the verdict, Thomas Cotter, who represented Marcoccia and Lyddy, asked the judge to throw it out. She made no ruling on his request.
“The verdict clearly doesn’t reflect any actual damages to Mr. Cimmino for his claims and that will be appealed,” he said.
In December 2001 Cimmino was appointed principal of Thomas Hooker Elementary School. He was fired in 2010 after twice being investigated by the state Department of Children and Families on allegations that he abused students. Each investigation was ended after DCF found it could not substantiate the allegations which had been brought by Marcoccia, head of the Lighthouse after-school program, and school employee Lyddy.
The details of the allegations were not immediately made public. However, a joint report of the state attorney general and state child advocate later revealed that Cimmino had been accused of taping a special needs student to a chair and fondling the buttocks of another student.
Cimmino’s firing drew angry protests from parents of students at the school who showed up at Board of Education meetings with posters demanding his reinstatement.
In her opening argument to the jury, Miller contended that Cimmino discovered Marcoccia was mismanaging the afterschool program’s funds, but was ignored when he brought it to the attention of the school board.
She charged that Marcoccia and Lyddy fabricated the abuse claims against him to cover up the mismanagement of the funds and discredit him.
Marcoccia, was later accused of stealing more than $15,000 from the program’s bank account and charged with first-degree larceny.
According to state Judicial Branch records, on Jan. 30, 2009, she pleaded guilty to tampering with physical evidence and was sentenced to a suspended 5-year term, followed by five years probation. She was fined $5,000.
I am glad to see Mr. Cimmino had his day in court and was vindicated by the court and a jury. It’s too bad these false allegations cost him his job. These false allegations also cost Hooker school and its students a good principal. Justice was done.
I am very happy for Andrew. He waited a long time for his time in court. Unfortunately, he probably will never see a dime of the judgement. I had the pleasure of having all six of my children at Hooker when Andrew was principal. No one can ever take away from him that he cared deeply and only wanted the best for each and every one of Thomas Hooker students. On so many occasions he went above and beyond the call of duty for so many of his students. Thomas Hooker has slowly been going downhill since his departure.
I truly wish Andrew the best!
This is another example of how Bpt politics cost the taxpayers money. Cimmino was obviously set up. The woman who stole the Lighthouse money is married to a man who is well known and friends with Mario. She accused Cimmino of a horrible act which she knew was not true. She tried to ruin this man’s career with her vicious lies. Labor Relations investigated this two years ago and knew the truth. But they were told by the political forces to let it ride and let it play out in court. In the end, justice was served and Mr. Cimmino got his money. So did his lawyer and the City’s lawyer.
This matter could have been put to bed two years ago (costing much less money) had Labor Relations taken the necessary action. This is why Labor Relations should be privatized. Disband the politicos in that dept and contract out the work to a qualified law firm who will abide by the law despite political influence.
I am afraid this case is just the beginning. There are many pending lawsuits and most will end with the City paying out big bucks. When is this going to end?
Fixer: This will end when the voters say it will end. We should keep a tally of what the city is forced to pay on these claims. I can tell you firsthand Thomas Hooker school has been going downhill since Mr. Cimmino left. But do the politicians care? NO.
This administration is made up of the nastiest people I have ever met in my 40 years in politics. These people who work in this administration at the management level are gutless cowards. I was told by a good source the male administrators go to a small room at city hall where they have their brains and balls removed. It could be true.
True that, Andy! They don’t care who or what they destroy. They are all spineless power-hungry cowards. They’re not all men though. Alanna Kabel is one of the worst offenders. She has a history of going after employees who are elderly, sick or vulnerable. People in the annex know who I am talking about. It’s like she gets pleasure out of kicking people while they’re down. There is something very sick about that. Her cousin Tom McCarthy knows about this but looks the other way. That makes him just as bad as the others.
*** This man’s story sounds like he was wronged and he managed to get some justice, no? ***
Sure Mojo, the man got some justice and you and the other taxpayers paid for it. How many more cases are out there waiting to be settled and how much more will the taxpayers have to pay?
Sounds like everyone is looking for a “scoreboard” where we can review cases that are in the courts where the City is on one of the sides? Maybe they could be grouped by problem area: employment issues, contract disputes, assessor valuation issues, WPCA or other City liens, etc. Keep a running total with the potential for expense of settlement, ongoing legal costs, etc. What do you think we would find? Time will tell.
*** Voting Zombie taxpayers voted or didn’t bother to vote at all, for the present Mayor, City Council and BOE. All involved in one way or another with legal suits the city usually loses or settles out to. Welcome to the political jungle known as ZOMBIELAND! *** DON’T CRY NOW! ***