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Friday, June 13, 2008

06/13/08 Greenwich Time News Links For Friday - Top Story: Police Officer Who Says Top Discriminates Against Him Saves White Man's Life (Updated)


Police Officer Vincent O'Banner and Michael DeAngelo at the Fitness Edge Wednesday. DeAngelo had a heart attack while working out on a treadmill and O'Banner saved his life by performing CPR.
(Keelin Daly/Greenwich Time Photo)

Top Story: Hero Police Officer Who Says Town Discriminates Against Him Saves Man's Life At Fitness Edge

Officer Vincent O'Banner, who is black, says he was suspended by the Greenwich Police Department for three days in September of 2007 in retaliation for filing a Federal Civil Rights complaint against the town.

Also, Included in the discipline was that O'Banner had forgotten his duty belt, an oversight that usually goes unpunished by supervisors.

"Greenwich officers routinely forget items such as duty belts and borrow those items from other officers for duty without being disciplined," the Officer Vincent O'Banner's later stated in an ammended complaint said.

Nevertheless O'Banner received a warning as a result of this trivial incident.

O'Banner's lawsuit consisted of 40 page of allegations going back nearly two decades.

The Federal civil rights lawsuit's chief complaint is that the Greenwich Police Department has "systematically and continuously discriminated" against members of racial and ethnic minorities in its hiring and promotional practices in ways that hurt him and others professionally and created a hostile work environment.

Officer O'Banner's lawsuit contended that a Greenwich Police Detective had disrespected a black female police officer for referring to her as "Buckwheat," after the Little Rascals character.

O'Banner's lawsuit said a Greenwich Police Lieutenant used a racial epithet for blacks that we wont reprint here.

PO
O'Banner's lawsuit accused the Greenwich Police Department of racial profiling. Officer Franco's lawsuit charged that the department disproportionately detained and arrested members of minorities and cites other examples of what the plaintiffs consider questionable conduct, including the use of highly offensive language to refer to racial minorities and a tendency to "mock African-American complainants, witnesses and arrestees, imitating their speech and mannerisms."

The suit alleged that civilian minority group members, whether arrested or simply looking for help, have been belittled and mistreated by white officers regularly.

PO O'Banner's lawsuit contended that a Greenwich Police Detective had disrespected a black female police officer for referring to her as "Buckwheat," after the Little Rascals character.

O'Banner's lawsuit said a Greenwich Police Lieutenant used a racial epithet for blacks that we wont reprint here.


PO O'Banner's lawsuit accussed the Greenwich Police Department of racial profiling.

Police Officer O'Banner's lawsuit says the he had "individually and collectively with others sought redress" internally before seeking relief in the courts.

When you read Officer
O'Banner's 40 page lawsuit you get the feeling that he is pissed off about being assigned to work at Greenwich High School.

PO
O'Banner's lawsuit contended the department has "manipulated assignments of the few minority officers on the job to foster the appearance of diversity,"...

O'Banner's suit also says that only 3 of the 66 officers hired since 1992 who are still with the department are minorities.

The lawsuit noted that
O'Banner's and the other minority officers was the fairness of the application process the department uses to select its sergeants.

Image how hard it is for this Hero Police Officer to work in the hostile and undisciplined Greenwich Police Department day in and day out.

Yet this hero officer doesn't allow the departments failure to handle employee and civilian complaints in a fair and open way affect his job performance
.

The Quotes:


"It's a blessing," the 58-year-old man said. "Otherwise people would have been going to my memorial. It's a blessing. Otherwise people would have been going to my memorial. God bless Vincent O'Banner for being around," DeAngelo said. "What if I had been in the gym alone? This is one I have to thank the Good Lord for."

"His son called me and thanked me for affording his father for more time with his family," O'Banner said. "That really affected me because I have a family as well. You get a major sense of accomplishment that you've used your skills the right way and saved a life."


The Rest Of The Story:

Fast acting officer saves man's life

Michael DeAngelo said he believes he owes his life to Vincent O'Basnner's quick, skillful action after his heart stopped at the Fitness Edge gym on East Putnam Avenue....

...
Greenwich Emergency Medical Service paramedics arrived soon after and took DeAngelo to Greenwich Hospital.

Rick Moretti, a manager at Fitness Edge, said that medical problems occur periodically at the gym and that O'Banner rose to the challenge....

"Vin O'Banner was a complete professional," Fitness Edge manager Rick Moretti said. "This was the third heart problem I've been involved in, and every time it happens you kind of get in a panic mode. I'm just so glad this guy is going to be all right."

...Surgeons at Greenwich Hospital implanted an electrical impulse defibrillator into DeAngelo's heart to help maintain his heartbeat if it fails.

"It's treatable and I am living with it," DeAngelo said.

O'Banner said the incident underlines the importance of the public being certified in cardio-pulmonary resuscitation techniques and using defibrillators so they will be able to assist during cardiac emergencies."Hopefully this type of incident helps make people think about getting trained to provide initial life support to victims," O'Banner said. "I'm so happy that I was able to do what I did and the more people who have those skills the better."

Please read the rest of the
Greenwich Time News Articles:


In the years to come, the van Rhyn brothers might be able to say that their efforts to spread the word about clean energy got a kick-start at Riverside School.

Selectmen OK Cos Cob plant site
In a milestone for a property that has sat abandoned for nearly two decades, the Board of Selectmen approved a plan yesterday to turn the former Cos Cob Power Plant site into a waterfront park with an athletic field, pedestrian trail, meadows and a shoreline plaza.

In a case of 'he said, she said,' Congressional hopeful Jim Himes is accusing fellow Democrat and Greenwich resident Lee Whitnum of calling him a Nazi on her campaign Web site and on a popular Internet blog.

District to ready 'Plan B'
In one possible scenario, Hamilton Avenue School may open late while in another one, Glenville School is the one with the delay.

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