The Board of Selectmen is considering paying out $437,500 as Darien's share in settling a $3.5 million lawsuit against five town police departments involved in a 2008 police raid in Easton that killed an innocent man.
The money would come from the town's insurance carrier "with no further liability or responsibility for the town," according to a "suggested motion" in the paper packet of documents hand-delivered to selectmen in preparation for Monday night's Board of Selectmen meeting.
The matter is on the agenda to be discussed in executive session. Other towns sued by the estate of Gonzalo Guizman are Easton, Monroe, Trumbull and Wilton. Each town's police department contributed members to the Southwest Regional Emergency Response Team, a SWAT team that took part in a raid on Ronald Terebesi's 91 Dogwood Dr. home.
According to a Hearst Newspapers report published Feb. 20 in the Darien News: In May 2008, Easton Police Chief John Solomon planned a raid at the home because he believed there were drugs and weapons at the residence. Officers in the SWERT team showed up at the residence, throwing grenades and eventually shooting Guizan, 33, six times.
Solomon retired in 2011.
According to The News, Easton First Selectman Tom Herrmann said the town is "fully insured" and there won't be a direct cost to taxpayers.
The $3.5 million settlement is to be paid to the victim's family, The News reports. The home's owner, Robert Terebesi, is seeking additional compensation.
