Over the past three years, five lawsuits have been filed against the Wethersfield Police Department, three by female police officers alleging sexual harassment and discrimination based on how they were treated in the department, and two filed by the former chief of police, alleging he was unfairly terminated.

All of the lawsuits overlap at certain points, with three women citing some of the same issues and the same people, all of which trickled up to former Town Manager Gary Evans, his issues with former police chief James Cetran, and text message exchanges between Evans and other town employees revealed as part of the lawsuits.

The most recent lawsuit, filed in July of 2024 by Sgt. Jennie E. Rivera of the Wethersfield Police Department alleged officers – namely now-retired Sergeant Luis Gonzalez – exchanged numerous vulgar text messages with Evans in 2020 about Rivera following her promotion by Chief Cetran. Evans and Gonzalez texted that Rivera was promoted in exchange for sexual favors, according to court documents.

The lawsuit further alleged the town attempted to conceal those text messages, made Gonzalez acting lieutenant during which he “used his position to further harass” her, and that both the town and internal affairs conducted incomplete investigations, exonerating Gonzalez of any wrongdoing. 

Rivera also filed a lawsuit in federal court against the town, and according to court records, a settlement was reached between the parties. The case was closed as of October 10, 2024. 

The settlement agreement is unknown at this time, but it comes on the heels of a Connecticut Superior Court Judge denying the town’s motion for summary judgment for numerous counts of harassment, discrimination, and retaliation in a 2021 lawsuit filed against the Town of Wethersfield by officer Jessica Blank, who alleges a pattern of disparate treatment and harassment in the police department that eventually led to her termination.

“The working environment that the Plaintiff is exposed to daily is hostile and pervasive,” Blank’s court complaint states. “There is a clear pattern of discriminatory behavior dating back years. The Wethersfield Police Department and the Town of Wethersfield have not taken the Plaintiff’s complaints seriously yet are quick to prosecute complaints made against her.”

Another lawsuit filed by another female police officer in 2021 claimed that hidden cameras placed in the police department’s female locker room to catch a suspected thief – something also referenced in Blank’s case – caused officer Bridget Camara to experience severe stress, anxiety, and emotionally distraught forcing her out of work until she was terminated by the department.

According to the court complaint and a letter sent to the town, Camara was “not made aware of the location of the camera or the dates that it was used to film and record the area,” and, “Bridget regularly used the locker room for normal activities, which included undressing, showering and changing clothing.”

The judge, however, ruled in favor of the town following a motion for summary judgment in which it was argued the town was protected by government immunity.

Lastly, a pair of lawsuits filed by former police chief James Cetran alleged he was unlawfully terminated following purported breaches in an agreement reached between himself and former town manager Evans – part of an ongoing dispute between the two town officials – that they would essentially stay out of each other’s way in exchange for Cetran retiring after a set period of time.

Details included in Cetran’s court case bump up against some of the lawsuits filed by female officers – namely the text messages between Evans and Gonzalez that allegedly show an animus toward Cetran by Evans.

“Prior to Chief Cetran’s return to office in January of 2021 and to a more limited degree thereafter, Mr. Evans engaged in text communications with Sergeant Luis Gonzalez which can most charitably be described as ‘unprofessional.’ They evidence a jointly held unfavorable opinion of Chief Cetran,” Trial Judge Referee Joseph M. Shortall wrote in his memorandum of decision. “There was no evidence, however, that these communications had any adverse effect on the chief’s ability to run the department.” 

According to the memorandum, Evans initially declined to uphold Cetran’s suspension of Gonzalez as a firearms instructor for one year following allegations he had acted inappropriately during firearms training — an incident referenced in the lawsuits filed by both Rivera and Blank. Blank wrote in her complaint that Evans’ rescission of Gonzalez’s discipline “was yet another example of the male-dominated culture within the Wethersfield Police Department,” and prompted her to resign her position as firearms instructor. 

Evans subsequently reversed his position, but the incident led to Cetran rescinding his agreement to retire. The Town Council then terminated him, and Cetran filed suit. The court, however, determined that Cetran anticipated breaking the agreement he entered, and dismissed his complaint. A second lawsuit filed by Cetran against the town that alleges the Town Council did not have the authority to terminate him is pending appeal.

Evans resigned his position in 2021 with praise from the Wethersfield Town Council and went on to become CEO of Stone Academy, a private school that specialized in nursing before it abruptly shut down in 2023, sparking various lawsuits and investigations. Evans was removed as a defendant in a lawsuit filed by former students against Stone Academy.

A 2023 report commissioned by Chief Medina said the police department under Cetran was fractured and fostered a “culture of fear,” according to Fox 61. Cetran’s attorney, Rachel Baird, responded, calling comments contained in the report “slanderous,” and asserted that Medina is not the lawful chief of police – part of another lawsuit filed by Cetran against Medina, alleging Medina was never properly hired by the town. 

Reached for comment, Baird — who also represented Jennie Rivera in her lawsuit — said: “the evidence is incontrovertible that, between April 2019 and June 2021, Town of Wethersfield employees and politicians exchanges misogynistic and/or racist texts about female police officers, female town residents, and a Latino male who died as the result of an officer-involved shooting on April 20, 2019.”

“At least through 2021, the Town had no policies to track and maintain text messages sent on town-issued cell phones. In addition to recognizing its legal obligation to follow state-mandated record retention policies, the town should also recognize its moral obligation to ensure that taxes collected from residents do not fund the use of town-issued cell phones to exchange misogynistic, racist, and otherwise offensive texts,” Baird wrote in an email.

Gonzalez was cleared of any wrongdoing following investigations by Wethersfield Human Resources and the police department’s Internal Affairs, according to the lawsuit filed by Rivera. Requests for comment to both Wethersfield Police Chief Medina, current Town Manager Fred Presley, and to Gary Evans were not returned.

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