The city will pay the legal bill for Mustafa Salahuddin, the Ansonia police officer who in March was acquitted of stealing a garden hose from the department.
Just how much the city will pay remains to be seen.
Salahuddin’s attorney Robert Serafinowicz has asked for $63,000.
On Tuesday, the Board of Aldermen voted to allow city counsel Kevin Blake to enter into negotiations about that bill with Serafinowicz.
The Board of Aldermen authorized Blake to pay no more than the requested $63,000.
Blake said Tuesday he would have to review the bill before determining whether to try to talk Serafinowicz down on the price.
Serafinowicz called the vote “good practice” on the city’s part and said he was happy about the decision.
“I really do think this is a matter that everyone wants to put behind them,” Serafinowicz said in a phone interview Tuesday night. “Of course I’m happy. It avoids litigation. Even though I’m a lawyer and that’s what I do for a living, it’s always better to resolve these things early on.”
Background
Salhuddin was accused of stealing a $25 garden hose from the department. He was charged with sixth-degree larceny in May 2008, after state police conducted an investigation into the disappearance of the hose.
After a three-day trial in March, a six-person jury found Salahuddin not guilty of the charge.
Read the Valley Indy coverage of the trial here.
The Bill
Last week, Serafinowicz submitted a five-page bill for his time and costs associated with the defense of Salahuddin.
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SalahuddinLegalBill
The bill details about 48 hours of work done at the rate of $350 per hour and another 112 hours billed at the rate of $400 per hour.
The bill also includes costs, such as postage, copying fees and travel costs.
Serafinowicz had threatened to file a suit against the city if it declined to pay the bill.
Serafinowicz cited a state statute that says any officer who is accused of a crime that allegedly occurred during work hours, and is then found not guilty, shall have economic loss and legal fees paid for by the employing governmental agency.
Blake provided the Board of Aldermen with a copy of that statute during an executive session on the topic Tuesday.
The legal bills were not listed on the Board of Aldermen agenda for Tuesday, but were accepted during the meeting as “late communication.”
An executive session was posted on the agenda, but did not specify the legal bills as a topic of discussion.
Before the Aldermen went into executive session, the Valley Indy publicly questioned whether it was legitimate to discuss the topic behind closed doors under the provisions of the state Freedom of Information Act.
Blake said the item was allowed under FOI laws because it’s considered “pending litigation.”
Although Serafinowicz has not filed a law suit against the city for payment of the bill, he did threaten to sue if the bills weren’t paid.
Under the law, “pending litigation” is defined as (A) a written notice to an agency which sets forth a demand for legal relief or which asserts a legal right stating the intention to institute an action before a court if such relief or right is not granted by the agency; (B) the service of a complaint against an agency returnable to a court which seeks to enforce or implement legal relief or a legal right; or © the agency’s consideration of action to enforce or implement legal relief or a legal right.
After the meeting, Blake said the city will likely only be liable for the attorney’s fees because Salahuddin was placed on paid leave after his arrest.
Salahuddin has not returned to work yet after the trial, Serafinowicz said, because of continuing medical problems.
“He’s going to have to decide what the future holds and that’s a decision that’s going to be personal to him,” Serafinowicz said.
