Sues in NYPD ax
Fired over shoot of gal, insists he was vic
A former NYPD sergeant fired for shooting the mother of his child says in a new lawsuit that he was actually the victim of domestic violence.
Jose Guerrero, who became well known within the department for teaching karate to at-risk kids, blames Deputy Commissioner Kevin Richardson and top NYPD brass for unfairly profiling him as a man who beat women.
His case filed Monday in Brooklyn Federal Court revolves around an ugly confrontation with the mother of his son, Yaharya Feliz, on Dec. 23, 2015, that ended with her being shot in the neck.
Guerrero was arrested for reckless endangerment, but prosecutors ultimately chose not to pursue charges against him or Feliz.
Nevertheless, the NYPD sought to fire Guerrero — and ignored his claims he was the actual victim, his suit charges.
Guerrero recalled telling NYPD investigators that Feliz had proclaimed, “You see, not even a f---ing bullet can stop me!”
“They actually laughed when I told them,” Guerrero, 52, told the Daily News.
“My dignity, my face is destroyed. I was a guy who helped my community. I gave karate lessons completely for free on my own time. How can I get that back?”
The toxic relationship dates back to 2012, Guerrero says. Feliz, who is not named as a defendant in the suit, “physically and mentally abused him, including threatening to have him fired from the NYPD,” according to papers.
The incident that wrecked his reputation began with Feliz slapping him in the face when he was asleep alone, he says.
Feliz had allegedly managed to enter his Yonkers apartment. During the scuffle Feliz grabbed Guerrero’s NYPD-issued Glock 9-mm. pistol, he says. The gun went off as the two struggled over the weapon, according to Guerrero. A bullet struck Feliz in the neck.
While in departmental limbo, Guerrero said he sat in the hallway of an NYPD building on Vesey St. by the doors to bathrooms, twiddling his thumbs. Other cops facing more serious allegations did not endure such treatment, he said.
“You treat people differently depending on your race, your gender or your political affiliation. This is what’s going on in the trial room,” Guerrero’s attorney Eric Sanders said of the departmental trials.
An excerpt of testimony from Guerrero’s departmental trial, which concluded in September 2017, indicates that Feliz admitted she was the first to grab the gun.
“She did not know how the gun fired, but (Guerrero) did not point it at her and she still had her hand on the gun. She did not recall having her finger on the trigger. Feliz did not even notice that she was wounded,” Assistant Trial Commissioner David Weisel wrote in a review of the evidence.
Feliz denied she’d abused Guerrero and was upset that the episode had become the subject of a lawsuit.
“When a person is in a hard situation, like he is right now — he’s kinda crazy right now …. He’s super angry,” she said.
The News exclusively reported that Richardson, who runs the office that handles disciplinary cases against cops, is facing an Internal Affairs probe for creating a toxic work environment.
Finally, in December 2017 Weisel recommended that Guerrero be fired for shooting Feliz and making false statements to investigators.
Guerrero, who is Hispanic, says the NYPD engaged in “racial and gender stereotyping.”
“To ignore him and to say he couldn’t have been a victim is gender stereotyping,” Sanders said.
Guerrero argues he should not have been fired over the “accidental discharge” of his gun.
He seeks damages to be determined at trial.
A Law Department spokesman said the suit would be reviewed.