A wooden gavel rests on a small pedastal on a courtroom bench in front of a U.S. flag. (Joshua Magbanua/U.S. Air Force)
(Tribune News Service) — A Bergen County sheriff’s officer and disabled Air Force veteran claims in a lawsuit that the sheriff’s office in New Jersey tried to fire him over a mental health crisis and derailed his career after he was reinstated.
Joseph Campolattaro filed suit in Bergen County Superior Court Dec. 3, alleging he faced discrimination based on his disabilities and retaliation by senior sheriff’s office employees.
The lawsuit names the Bergen County Sheriff’s Office, Sheriff Anthony Cureton, Chief Carmelo Giustra and Capt. Tashara Windley as defendants.
According to the lawsuit, the sheriff’s office terminated Campolattaro after an April 2023 mental health crisis in which he drove under the influence while off duty.
Police declined to file charges, but the sheriff’s office fired him.
In February, the state Civil Service Commission ordered his reinstatement.
The suit alleges the sheriff’s office officials “engineered a set of processes” designed to cause Campolattaro’s termination, which was an “excessive form of punishment.”
Eric Kleiner, Campolattaro’s attorney, said in a statement the sheriff’s department “terrorized Joe in his workplace by severely and excessively marginalizing him and isolating him.”
The suit claims Campolattaro has not received back pay, benefits or lost sick and vacation time ordered by the commission. It also alleges the sheriff’s office delayed his fitness-for-duty clearance and stalled renewal of his law enforcement license, leaving him in a civilian role in the Civil Process Unit.
Cureton denied any “conspiracy” to remove Campolattaro, saying the office applied “progressive discipline” and complied with the commission’s ruling to reinstate him with “full pay and benefits.”
He said Campolattaro cannot return to armed duty until the Police Training Commission renews his license.
“We have attempted to find useful non-law enforcement work for Campolattaro while the PTC decides whether to reinstate his license,” Cureton said.
Windley and Giustra did not respond to requests for comment.
The lawsuit further alleges Campolattaro lost health insurance and was forced to seek “deficient” care through the state Department of Veterans Affairs after being struck by a van and seriously injured in September 2024.
It also claims years of harassment by Windley, including comments that he looked like someone who wanted to “bomb synagogues,” and discrimination against white veterans.
As a result, Campolattaro says he has suffered anxiety, stress, depression and other health issues.
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