Crime & Safety

Jury Tosses Suit Against Harrison Police

An 8-member jury found that the Harrison Police Department did nothing wrong with its handling of a 2007 case involving Sofia Saenz.

It took only 41 minutes for an 8-person federal jury to clear three members of the Harrison Police Department of any wrongdoing in an event stemming back to 2007, ending the last of more than a dozen lawsuits filed against the department in four years.

The decision was delivered Friday afternoon in White Plains.

Sofia Saenz, husband of former Harrison PBA president Ralph Tancredi, filed the suit, alleging that three Harrison officers — Detective Richard Light and Officers Mark DiGiacomo and Edward Lucas — forcibly held her and pressured her to sign a protection order against Tancredi following an incident at Annie’s Café on Harrison Avenue in Aug. 2007.

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At that time police were investigating an alleged fight that took place between Tancredi and Joshua Clark. Saenz was dating Clark at the time, and the altercation elevated when Tancredi allegedly slapped Clark, who allegedly threatened Tancredi with a souvenir sports bat.

Following the incident, according to police reports, Saenz signed the order of protection against Tancredi alleging a long history of physical abuse during their relationship. Those allegations were detailed in a video-taped statement and charges were filed against Tancredi for second-degree harassment.

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"All the Harrison Police Department did is try to investigate that (incident) and try to assist her," said Harrison Deputy Village Attorney Jonathan Kraut, who represented the police during last week's trial.

But Saenz saw things differently. Westchester County prosecutors were forced to drop the harassment charges against Tancredi when Saenz refused to cooperate in the prosecution after the two had rekindled their relationship. 

She then filed the lawsuit, alleging that the officers forced her to sign the order of protection in an effort to tarnish Tancredi's name. She was seeking compensatory damages in an unspecified amount.

Throughout the process, the Harrison Police Department has maintained no wrongdoing on their part. Kraut said this week that the allegations were baseless and that the town is not at all surprised by the jury's quick decision.

"That tells me the jury did not buy her pack of lies for one second," Kraut said.

The suit is the last of 13 filed against the Harrison Police since spring of 2007. All were either dismissed, withdrawn or decided in the department's favor in trial. 

Tancredi has had a troublesome relationship with the department for years. He was fired in 2009, after a lengthy process and has filed at least four lawsuits of his own dating back to 2007, all of which were dismissed.

Editor's Note: Katherine Frankel contributed to this report.


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