Seymour Police Detective Ronald Goodmaster, who was demoted in June by the Police Commission from Detective Sgt., has filed a complaint with the state Commission on Human Rights and Opportunities.
Jim O’Neill, media spokesman for CHRO, said the complaint was received on Aug. 26 and is against the Seymour Police Department.
O’Neill said he could not disclose the details of the complaint.
Goodmaster could not be reached for comment.
A Fight
Though the details of the complaint weren’t made public, Goodmaster has had an ongoing dispute with the department.
In May 2010, Goodmaster was suspended for three days for allegedly violating the police department’s rules on “truthfulness.”
Goodmaster filed a grievance, and the suspension was turned into paid vacation.
But the Board of Police Commissioners in October 2010 issued another suspension to Goodmaster — this time for talking to the media about the first suspension in violation of the department’s duty manual.
Then in May 2011, the Board of Police Commissioners started hearings on an allegation that Goodmaster failed to share information about a fugitive living in Seymour.
In June 2011, Goodmaster was demoted from Detective Sgt. to Detective as a result of that investigation.
Later that month, Goodmaster filed an FOI complaint against three police commissioners for allegedly holding an illegal meeting to talk about his case.
Also, a grievance with the state Board of Mediation and Arbitration was filed over the summer.
The police commission did not have just cause to demote Goodmaster, said Richard Gudis, an attorney for the police union, at that time.
Gudis could not be reached for comment Thursday.
Victoria Ferrara, an attorney who has represented Goodmaster in the past, was also called for comment, but could not be reached.
