A former Paterson police officer who claimed she was forced to retire after shooting an unarmed man in front of his children more than four years ago has settled a discrimination lawsuit with the city for $185,000, officials said Tuesday.
Haydee Santana, 53, said in court papers she was treated differently from other male officers who had been involved in shootings of civilians and that the city did not send her for critical incident stress counseling or a psychiatric exam.
Santana shot Larry Bouie once in the stomach on Oct. 29, 2016, as he ran toward Santana “while screaming and flailing his arms,” the Passaic County Prosecutor’s Office said following an investigation.
A grand jury decided against charges for Santana of the shooting. Bouie filed a federal lawsuit over the incident and the city council agreed to settle his case last year for $450,000.
The shooting occurred while Bouie was with his two children, who witnessed the incident. Bouie was hospitalized and later underwent skin grafts, two life-saving surgeries, physical therapy and requires ongoing treatment, according to his lawsuit.
Santana claimed in her suit she was treated differently from other Paterson police officers who had been involved in on-duty shootings. She claimed she was forced to use sick leave rather than be placed on administrative leave and told she had to be on worker’s compensation to receive counseling.
She filed a grievance against the police department, but a hearing was never scheduled or heard, her suit states.
“To plaintiff’s knowledge, no other officers were treated the same way as she was after a shooting incident,” her lawsuit states. “It took 15 months to clear her when male officers were cleared in two months.”
Santana claims the city “failed and refused to take any action to protect (her) rights” and that she was forced to retire.
Paterson Mayor Andre Sayegh on Tuesday said the city council has agreed to settle Santana’s lawsuit for $185,000. He declined to comment further on the lawsuit or settlement.
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Anthony G. Attrino may be reached at tattrino@njadvancemedia.com. Follow him on Twitter @TonyAttrino. Find NJ.com on Facebook.